UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.-- The Penn State women's tennis team did not drop a single match en route to blanking George Washington, 7-0, and Towson, 7-0. The Nittany Lions improved to 4-0, a feat they haven't achieved since the 2013 season when they started off with nine wins.
The Colonials and Tigers both move to 0-1 on the season.
"We spent quite a bit of time this week, preparing to get better for these matches this weekend," said head coach Chris Cagle. "I saw a number of areas that work was evident, especially in our doubles play. I felt like we were better in the way we organized and the way we finished. But, we have to keep our foot on the gas pedal because we know what is ahead of us this week with two quality matches in Rutgers and Cornell. We're happy to get two wins today, so I'm looking forward to keep pushing with this team."
GEORGE WASHINGTON MATCHES
Penn State took the doubles point after cruising through three doubles matches. Gabby O'Gorman (Gunnedah, N.S. Wales, Australia) and Olivia Rohrbacher (Sandusky, Ohio) defeated Maria Siopacha and Melis Bayraktaroglu, 6-2.
Frederikke Svarre (Copenhagen, Denmark) and Chelsea Sawyer (Clemmons, N.C.) clinched the doubles point, defeating Sara Grubac and Katarin Marinkovikj, 6-1. Samantha Smith (Cary, N.C.) and Shannon Hanley (Kensington, Md.) completed the sweep with a 6-2 win over Victoria Kogan and Xenia De Luna.
O'Gorman battled for her third win on the season in No. 1 singles, defeating Siopacha, 6-4, 7-5. Olivia Rohrbacher moved up to No. 3 singles and had a come-from-behind victory to defeat Grubac, 4-6, 6-1, 6-4.
Smith clinched the match for the second week in a row, defeating Marinkovikj 7-5, 7-5. Sawyer needed a tiebreak in both sets to secure the win over Bayraktaroglu, 7-6(5), 7-6(6).
Hanley added to the Nittany Lion lead with a victory over Kogan, 6-0, 6-2. Svarre completed the sweep of the Colonials with a win over De Luna, 6-4, 6-3.
Doubles Final:
1. Gabby O'Gorman/Olivia Rohrbacher (PSU) def. SIOPACHA, Maria/BAYRAKTAROGLU, Melis (GW) 6-2
2. Frederikke Svarre/Chelsea Sawyer (PSU) def. GRUBAC, Sara/MARINKOVIKJ, Katarin (GW) 6-1
3. Samantha Smith/Shannon Hanley (PSU) def. KOGAN, Victoria/DE LUNA, Xenia (GW) 6-2
Order of finish: (1,2,3)
Singles Final:
1. Gabby O'Gorman (PSU) def. SIOPACHA, Maria (GW) 6-4, 7-5
2. Chelsea Sawyer (PSU) def. BAYRAKTAROGLU, Melis (GW) 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (8-6)
3. Olivia Rohrbacher (PSU) def. GRUBAC, Sara (GW) 4-6, 6-1, 6-4
4. Samantha Smith (PSU) def. MARINKOVIKJ, Katarin (GW) 7-5, 7-5
5. Frederikke Svarre (PSU) def. DE LUNA, Xenia (GW) 6-4, 6-3
6. Shannon Hanley (PSU) def. KOGAN, Victoria (GW) 6-0, 6-2
Order of finish: (1,3,4,2,6,5)
TOWSON MATCHES
Penn State once again jumped out to an early 1-0 lead after going 3-0 to secure the doubles point. O'Gorman and Rohrbacher defeated Alexa Martinez and Yevgeniya Shusterman, 6-1.
Svarre and Sawyer defeated Themis Haliou and Lucy Gloninger, 6-1. Hanley and Smith defeated Amelia Lawson and Pheobe Collins, 6-3.
Singles saw the spring debut of three Nittany Lions, including Olivia Ryan (Victoria, Australia), Sydney Weinberg (Winchester, Mass.) and Gracey Hirsch (Cincinnati, Ohio).
O'Gorman continued her peak spring form with a win over Martinez, 6-1, 6-3. Sawyer continued the winning trend, defeating Haliou, 6-3, 6-0.
Ryan looked the part in her spring debut, triumphing over Lawson, 6-2, 6-1. Svarre handed Shusterman a 6-0, 6-4 loss.
Weinberg won her first match of the spring, defeating Collins, 6-2, 6-1. Hirsch celebrated her birthday with a win over Gloninger 6-2, 2-6, 1-0 (10-5).
Doubles Final:
1. Gabby O'Gorman/Olivia Rohrbacher (PSU) def. Alexa Martinez/Yevgeniya Shusterman (TOW) 6-1
2. Frederikke Svarre/Chelsea Sawyer (PSU) def. Themis Haliou/Lucy Gloninger (TOW) 6-1
3. Shannon Hanley/Samantha Smith (PSU) def. Amelia Lawson/Pheobe Collins (TOW) 6-3
Order of finish: (1, 2, 3)
Singles Final:
1. Gabby O'Gorman (PSU) def. Alexa Martinez (TOW) 6-1, 6-3
2. Chelsea Sawyer (PSU) def. Themis Haliou (TOW) 6-3, 6-0
3. Frederikke Svarre (PSU) def. Yevgeniya Shusterman (TOW) 6-0, 6-4
4. Olivia Ryan (PSU) def. Amelia Lawson (TOW) 6-2, 6-1
5. Sydney Weinberg (PSU) def. Pheobe Collins (TOW) 6-2, 6-1
6. Gracey Hirsch (PSU) def. Lucy Gloninger (TOW) 6-2, 2-6, 1-0 (10-5)
Order of finish: (1,2,4,3,5,6)
HEAR IT FROM THEM
Assistant Coach Alexandra Anghelescu
"It was great to get our three freshman out there, wearing the Penn State jersey. It was Gracey's birthday and it was great to have the whole team there to support her as she got her W. All three freshman got on the board with a W and to see their hard work off court, supporting their teammates day in and day out when they are not in the lineup payoff was great. It shows that all the work we do throughout the fall and spring pays off."
Freshman Sydney Weinberg
"Olivia Ryan and I played an exhibition match in doubles, and I think that gave us a lot of momentum headed into the singles matches. I was on show court, and that obviously brought a little bit of nerves, with it being the first match, but I was able to settle in and got to work. I'm proud of the work I've put in to get the individual and team win. It was awesome to see a good match for all of us."
Freshman Olivia Ryan
"I was pretty nervous for my first match, but all of the girls were really encouraging. They helped me get through my match and reminded me to keep breathing. I think overall we've played really well as a team and we have good cohesion through the whole lineup."
Freshman Gracey Hirsch
"I was really nervous the whole time, but it was really good to just get out there and play. It was fun to have everyone cheering for you and everyone was so supportive. It is so cool to carry the name of Penn State with you when you compete and everything you do represents Penn State."
UP NEXT
The Nittany Lions will hit the road for the first time this season against Rutgers in Piscataway, N.J. on Friday, Feb. 1 at 12:30 p.m.
Keep up with the Penn State women's tennis team at GoPSUsports.com. For continued updates throughout the year, make sure to `like' our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatewten and follow our twitter @pennstateWTEN.
