Syracuse swept in straight sets against Miami

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Syracuse women’s tennis came into Miami after a season home finale and a rejuvenating 4-3 win over the 8-11 Boston College. However, the Orange were unable to build off of the victory as they fell away to the Hurricanes 4-0.

The Orange fell behind early in the doubles competition as senior Sofya Treshcheva and Shiori Ito lost 6-0 to Miami pair Daevenia Achong and Eden Richardson. Ranked No. 31 and No. 50 in collegiate women’s tennis, Achong and Richardson were too much for Syracuse’s top doubles pairing.

Junior Polina Kozyreva and freshman Miyuka Kimoto’s No. 2 doubles matchup played out similarly. Kozyreva and Kimoto managed got on the board, registering wins in 4 games but ultimately lost the set to Miami’s Tatyana Nikolenko and Maya Tahan 6-4.
Although sophomores Viktoriya Kanapatskaya and Ines Fonte held their own in the No. 3 doubles matchup, the set remained unfinished. Due to Syracuse’s lackluster play in the prior two matches, Miami had already secured the doubles point to put the Hurricanes up 1-0 going into the singles competition.

After picking up her 21st win of the season, Kozyreva fell in the No. 4 singles matchup against Tahan. Kozyreva, who started off her junior campaign in blistering fashion was upset in straight sets 6-0, 6-1.

Normally the favorite from the No. 2 doubles position, Kimoto was surprisingly slotted in at the No. 1 position for Younes Limam’s side. In only her fifth time playing in the position, which is ordinarily occupied by Kanapatskaya, the Japanese native fell to Achong 6-2, 6-0.

The Orange’s woes in singles continued as junior Zeynep Erman lost to Miami’s Isabella Pfennig 6-1, 6-1. Erman couldn’t seem to find her stride nor give Syracuse their first point of the evening.

Syracuse’s inability to register a single point through its initial three matches meant that, for the first time all season, the Orange were not able to finish their remaining three. Fonte was down after one set, Kanapatskaya trailed in her second and Ito ran out of time to complete a comeback as the Hurricanes had already clinched the victory.

Syracuse will round out their regular season in Tallahassee, Florida, on Sunday as they travel to No. 35 Florida State. The Orange are now 9-10 on the season and will hope to finish their road trip by moving back to .500. Depending on the result, Limam’s team will finish 10th or 11th in the ACC standings.