COLUMBIA, S.C. – The Wake Forest women’s tennis team (8-3, 0-0 ACC) opened their six-match road trip with a doubleheader at the Carolina Tennis Center, facing South Carolina (5-3, 0-0 SEC) and Western Carolina (4-5, 0-0 SoCon).
- Match 1: Wake Forest fell to South Carolina, 4-1 despite winning the doubles point.
- Match 2: The Demon Deacons rebounded with a 4-0 sweep of Western Carolina.
With the win over WCU, Wake Forest remains undefeated in doubles play in 2024 (22-3 overall), while Anna Zhang and Whitley Pate improved to 8-0 as a duo.
Match 1: Wake Forest vs. South Carolina (L, 4-1)
How It Happened
- Wake Forest secured the doubles point:
✔ Blanch/Mills defeated Buchwald/Hamner (6-4)
✔ Zhang/Pate clinched the point, winning 7-5 at third doubles - South Carolina won four consecutive singles matches to take the victory.
- Nevena Carton and Krystal Blanch’s matches were unfinished, despite strong performances against ranked opponents.
Singles Results (South Carolina Wins 4-1)
- Nevena Carton (WF) vs. No. 21 Sarah Hamner (SC) – 4-6, 5-5 UF
- No. 73 Krystal Blanch (WF) vs. No. 61 Kaitlyn Carnicella (SC) – 4-6, 4-5 UF
- Olympe Lancelot (SC) def. Anna Zhang (WF) – 6-2, 6-3
- Misa Malkin (SC) def. Whitley Pate (WF) – 6-0, 6-4
- Helena Buchwald (SC) def. Kady Tannenbaum (WF) – 6-2, 6-0
- Anna Bella Bianca Berqvist Larsson (SC) def. Sankavi Gownder (WF) – 7-5, 6-0
Doubles Results (Wake Forest Wins 2-1)
- Blanch/Mills (WF) def. Buchwald/Hamner (SC) – 6-4
- Lancelot/Carnicella (SC) def. No. 36 Carton/Tannenbaum (WF) – 6-1
- Zhang/Pate (WF) def. Bergqvist Larsson/Malkin (SC) – 7-5
Match 2: Wake Forest vs. Western Carolina (W, 4-0)
How It Happened
- Wake Forest dominated in doubles play, with:
✔ Carton/Tannenbaum sweeping Redondo/Samola (6-0)
✔ Zhang/Pate clinching the point with a 6-1 win - In singles, Sankavi Gownder (6-1, 6-2) and Brianna Baldi (6-3, 6-2) secured early wins.
- Jingyi Li closed out the sweep with a 6-4, 6-3 victory.
Singles Results (Wake Forest Wins 4-0)
- Nevena Carton (WF) vs. Jade Groen (WCU) – 4-6, 3-4 UF
- No. 73 Krystal Blanch (WF) vs. Isabella Samola (WCU) – 7-6, 4-1 UF
- Kady Tannenbaum (WF) vs. Chloe Schwarz (WCU) – 6-7, 3-3 UF
- Sankavi Gownder (WF) def. Angela Perez (WCU) – 6-1, 6-2
- Brianna Baldi (WF) def. Andrea Redondo (WCU) – 6-3, 6-2
- Jingyi Li (WF) def. Zoe Liu (WCU) – 6-4, 6-3
Doubles Results (Wake Forest Wins 2-0)
- Blanch/Mills (WF) vs. Schwarz/Groen (WCU) – 3-3 UF
- No. 36 Carton/Tannenbaum (WF) def. Redondo/Samola (WCU) – 6-0
- Zhang/Pate (WF) def. Osadova/Perez (WCU) – 6-1
Coach Jeff Wyshner on the Team’s Performance
“Mixed result day for us. We started well against South Carolina with strong doubles wins, but we couldn’t carry that momentum into singles. Credit to South Carolina—they responded well after two tough road losses.”
“I’m proud of how we bounced back against Western Carolina. We had to sit out a couple of players, which put extra pressure on certain spots, but Sankavi [Gownder], Brianna [Baldi], and Jingyi [Li] stepped up. We only have one more week of non-conference play, so next weekend’s matches are important for us.”
What’s Next?
Wake Forest continues its road trip with two more non-conference matchups:
- Friday, Feb. 23 – Vs. Naval Academy (Annapolis, MD)
- Sunday, Feb. 25 – Vs. William & Mary (Williamsburg, VA)
The Demon Deacons will then open ACC play, looking to build on their 8-3 record.
