Ghidotti & Abelson earn tourney MVP honors
Photo courtesy of Doug Cochran | Senior Lauren Ghidotti had a masterful performance at the Cincinnati Invitational with victories in singles and doubles play. She was awarded tournament MVP in singles as well as doubles with partner Sophia Abelson.
The Xavier women’s tennis team finished up this weekend’s play, competing at the Cincinnati Invitational. The Musketeers were led by outstanding upperclassmen leadership but also promising transfer talent in the back-end.
During Friday’s singles matches, Senior Lauren Ghidotti shined casting a 3-0 record on Friday, facing counterparts from Illinois-Chicago, Ball State and Cincinnati. Another standout performer from Friday’s contest was the senior transfer from Central Florida, Elizabeth Bagerbaseh. She had a tremendous start to her Xavier career, posting a 3-0 record in singles play on the weekend.
Ghidotti was said to be the MVP of the weekend in both singles and doubles play, with her partner, junior Sophia Abelson. Ghidotti and Abelson competed together on the doubles court against quality opponents from Ball State and school rival foe, the Cincinnati Bearcats. The combination of Ghidotti and Abelson won both of these matches with scores of 6-0 and 6-1.
The Musketeers finished the weekend with a record of 15-4 in singles play. This is quite an impressive stat, considering the high-level of competition that participated in the invitational. The doubles teams showed promise with a final card of 5-5 over the weekend. This is a solid record to begin the season, but clearly there is room for improvement.
“Our team competed well against some quality opponents,” Head coach Doug Matthews told Xavier Athletic Communications. “We have some areas we need to improve, especially in doubles play, but this was a great start.”
All in all, the Cincinnati Invitational was a productive start for the Musketeers. The team looks to carry its strong momentum into the next match when it competes at the Miami Invitational Sept. 29. The Musketeers look motivated to improve from last year after falling to St. John’s in the Big East semifinals last May. So far, it seems to be off to an impressive start.
By: Tim Kramer ~Guest Writer~
Araujo, Lee & Dell start strong
This weekend, Xavier men’s tennis began its fall season at the ATP Invitational in nearby Mason, Ohio. In the event, which lasted throughout the weekend, the Musketeers were able to obtain not only victories in both singles and doubles play but also gain momentum to start the season.
The team entered the tournament being led by seniors Gabriel Araujo and Connor LaFavre. Alongside the seniors, sophomores Michael Lee and Nate Dell played in the weekend’s events. Also on the squad, the Musketeers were joined by three new players. Freshmen Jan Vrba, Brett Winters and Alejandro Rodrigues-Vidal all made their Xavier tennis debuts in the ATP Invitational.
On the first day of play on Friday, the team notched seven singles wins and three doubles wins. All three freshmen were able to obtain singles victories in their respective flights, getting them their first career college victories. Senior Araujo was also able to get his first victories of the season by winning two singles matches.
Xavier also competed in doubles play on Friday. Sophomores Michael Lee and Nate Dell won their doubles match in their flight, along with Winters and Vidal, who were also able to come away with a win in their match. Araujo and Dykema won their doubles match on Friday as well.
The action continued Saturday with members of the squad competing in both singles and doubles events. Xavier was able to come away with a win in the doubles second flight bracket. Although the team was only able to gain wins in doubles action on Saturday, the team gained strong experience and momentum heading into their next event.
The team will travel to Kalamazoo, Mich., this Saturday for the next competition, the Western Michigan Invitational.
By: Colin Cooper ~Guest Writer~
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