Box Score (PDF)
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The George Mason University women's tennis team won its second-consecutive match with a resilient effort at Howard on Sunday afternoon.
The Patriots pulled out a 4-3 victory in spite of some adverse elements during the match at Bannecker Park in Washington, D.C.
"Our players had to overcome some very rowdy spectators and a very hostile environment to secure a hard-fought victory today," head coach Steve Curtis said. "I was very proud of our resolve and focus."
The Patriots took an early 1-0 lead after sweeping the doubles point. Junior
Sydney Green and freshman
Brianna Gibbs dominated at No. 1 doubles (6-1), while freshmen
Hannah Yang and
Hannah Cianciola took a 6-3 decision at No. 2. Junior
Nicole Haigwood and freshman
Kayleigh Hahn rounded out the doubles wins with a 6-4 victory at No. 3.
Howard responded to tie it up 1-1 after a win at No. 1 singles.
The Patriots then went back up 2-1 after a great match from
Hannah Cianciola at No. 5 singles. The Canfield, Ohio, native won her first set, 6-3, then battled to a 6-6 tie in the second set. She showed tenacity in the tiebreaker, dominating it in 7-2 fashion to give the Green & Gold their first point of the day.
Howard then fought back with a win at No. 2 singles to tie it at 2-2.
From there, Yang took the brunt of the difficult fan environment at No. 3 singles, but was able to move past the distractions to claim victory. She won her first set, 6-1. Then, after falling in the second set, she put together a mature and resilient performance in the third set to take it, 6-3.
After Howard won at No. 4 singles, the match then came down to sophomore
Liz Lowe, who pulled out the clutch win at No. 6 singles. She won her first set easily, 6-1, then fell in a 7-6 decision in the second. But Lowe won the first four games of the final set to clear her path to victory and give Mason a win in the regular season finale.
The Patriots now head to the 2018 Atlantic 10 Championship at the USTA Campus in Orlando, Fla. The Green & Gold open the event Wednesday and will learn their match time and opponent in the coming days.
