The Lady Vols dominate the season opener against Wake Forest

COLUMBUS, Ohio Opening the 2023 dual season on a high, the 22nd-ranked Tennessee women’s tennis team cruised past Wake Forest 4-0 in the first round of the ITA Kickoff Weekend at the Ty Tucker Tennis Center on Ohio State’s campus.

“We knew we had to play well and compete hard today and that’s exactly what our team did,” head coach. Alison Ojeda said. “Eleonora Molinaro did a very good job playing a perfect match and Lauren Anzalotta did a great job managing the show from start to finish. Rebecca Mertena played decisively to end points from the midfield area. All of these were great things to see.”

Tennessee (1-0) took the singles point with a big start from Anzalotta and Elsa Tomase on court 3. The pairing beat Nevena Carton/Whitley Pate 6-1 and gave the momentum to the other two on the court in action. Molinaro embraced this energy Daria Kucher on the next court as the duo dominated and finished with a 6-2 victory.

In singles, it started as a battle, but when the Lady Vols made their runs, it came in bunches.

Molinaro stepped on the gas first and finished both the first set and the match in the fastest time with a 6-2, 6-3 decision by Carton. Anzalotta, playing on the adjacent court, found the gas soon after and defeated Jingyi Li 6-3, 6-1 for her first Division I singles victory.

On Court 1, No. 76 Mertena finished the job, defeating No. 27 Casie Wooten 6-2, 6-3 to complete her first win of the season.

“We now have a very good team that will come after us from start to finish,” Ojeda continued. “We can win tomorrow, but we have to compete with a level of maturity and belief in all nine positions.”

Full scores from Friday’s season opener can be found below.

NEXT

The Lady Volunteers will face host and top seed Ohio State in the regional at 4 PM ET at the Ty Tucker Tennis Center. The winner will win their ticket to the ITA Indoor National Championship in Seattle, Washington in two weeks.

#22 Tennessee 4, Wake Forest 0

Singles

1. #76 Rebecca Mertena (TENN) def. #27 Casie Wooten (WF) 6-2, 6-3
2. Anna Brylin (WF) vs. #68 Elsa Tomase (TENN) 6-3, 4-2, undefeated
3. Brooke Killingsworth (WF) vs. #55 Daria Kucher (TENN) 5-7, 0-1, incomplete
4. Eleonora Molinaro (TENN) def. Nevena Carton (WF) 6-2, 6-3
5. Whitley Pate (WF) vs. Esther Adeshina (TENN) 6-3, 2-6, 0-3, incomplete
6. Lauren Anzalotta (TENN) defeated Jingyi Li (WF) 6-3, 6-1

Double up

1. #12 Anna Brylin/Brooke Killingsworth (WF) vs. Esther Adeshina/Rebecca Mertena (TENN) 5-3, incomplete
2. Eleonora Molinaro/Daria Kucher (TENN) def. Mia Ahmad/Casie Wooten (WF) 6-2
3. Elsa Tomase/Lauren Anzalotta (TENN) def. Nevena Carton/Whitley Pate (WF) 6-1