Three Vols entries advance in Women’s ITA Sectional

 The University of Tennessee women’s tennis team saw three entries advance on the opening day of the ITA Women’s South Sectional Championships in Barksdale Stadium Thursday.

Francesca Mattioli and Lisa Kamigata advanced to the singles round of 32, while Rinon Okuwaki and Maeve Thornton advanced to the doubles round of 16.

“Overall, today proved to be a valuable day,” Tennessee head coach Alison Ojeda said after the first day of action. “We gained a lot of important information about who our players are and the level we’re at right now.”

Okuwaki and Thornton took the first win of the day for the Lady Vols, taking down FAU’s Panna Bartha/Katrin Pavkova tandem, 7-5, 6-3. The pair battled to a hard-fought first set victory and held their momentum to advance to tomorrow’s round of 16.Mattioli collected the first singles victory of the day for the Lady Vols. A wildcard selection playing in her first collegiate action of the fall, she defeated Kentucky’s Ascuncion Jadue in comeback, 1-6, 6-2, 6-2 fashion.

“[I was] very impressed with Fran’s internal dialogue today during her singles match. That is what allowed her to fight back and win that in three sets,” Ojeda said.

Kamigata followed suit, claiming an impressive 6-4, 6-3 win over Lipscomb’s Deborah Dominguez Collado. The freshman will continue her sensational fall slate in tomorrow’s round of 32 match, entering the day with a 6-1 singles record to open her collegiate career.

Fellow freshman Alyson Shannon posted multiple impressive performances. Though she came out on the losing end of a 6-7, 6-3, 6-4 marathon, the rookie battled to a tiebreak win of her first set and posted a strong result against Georgia’s No. 27 Deniz Dilek. Dilek is the top-seeded player in the tournament field.

Later, in the first-round consolation match, Shannon came just short in a 6-1, 2-6, 10-8 win for Vanderbilt’s No. 14 Valeria Ray.

“I was also pretty impressed with our fight,” Ojeda continued, “particularly with Aly [Shannon] and Lisa’s ability to understand how to tactically adjust during a singles match.”

“[Shannon’s] work ethic is unbelievable,” Assistant coach Martim Prata said. “She’s a fighter. She wants to get better every day and has already improved so much in only three months on campus. She’s fighting with some of the best players in the entire country, two of the best in the SEC, and she’s going to be super important to our team this year. She has a bright future.”

The Lady Vols continue play at the ITA South Sectional Friday, with match times still to be determined.