ORLANDO, Fla. - The Carthage Firebirds women's tennis team spent the week in (mostly) sunny Florida for Spring Break, taking on four teams in four days. 

The team's first match of the trip, originally scheduled to be against Coe College on March 13, was canceled due to heavy rain in the Orlando area. The team's first competition ultimately came against then-5-0 Saint Mary's College, who took down the Firebirds 6-3. Freshmen Xingchen Liu and senior Giana Apostoli were the lone singles winners against the Belles, while the tandem also paired up for a win in the No. 1 doubles flight.

Not originally on the schedule, Carthage was able to get a dual match with NCAA Division II Saint Thomas Aquinas College on the docket for the 15th. Played at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Carthage fell 7-0; the two teams used NCAA DII scoring in the dual match rather than DIII scoring. Marie Weis was the only Firebird to take a match into a third set, as the first-year athlete from Granville, Ohio won set two 7-5 before falling 10-4 in a third-set tiebreaker. 

Carthage's first three opponents were a combined 27-2 heading into their matches with the Firebirds, as the team was set to face off with another solid opponent on day three - taking on Transylvania University. The Firebirds dominated in singles competition, winning five out of six flights to earn the victory. Liu and Apostoli each won their singles matches and again teamed up to win in No. 1 doubles, while Sonnemaker, Weis, and Kearney each picked up singles wins. The wins for Apostoli and Weis each came in third-set tiebreakers. 

UW-Superior was the final team on the schedule for the Firebirds in Florida, with Carthage sweeping the Yellowjackets 9-0. Carthage lost only 20 games throughout the entire dual match en route to winning consecutive matches for the second time this season. 

Following a 2-2 trip, the team sits at .500 (7-7) with five dual matches remaining on its schedule. 



Match One

• Final Score: Saint Mary's (Ind.) 6, Carthage 3   
• Location: Orlando, Florida
• Records: Carthage 5-6, Saint Mary's 6-0

Match Two

• Final Score: Saint Thomas Aquinas 7, Carthage 0 (Division II Scoring)
• Location: USTA National Campus - Orlando, Florida
• Records: Carthage 5-7, Saint Thomas Aquinas 11-1

Match Three

• Final Score: Carthage 6, Transylvania 3
• Location: XS Tennis Center - Chicago, Illinois
• Records: Carthage 6-7, Transylvania 11-2

Match Four

• Final Score: Carthage 9, UW-Superior 0
• Location: Sanlando Tennis Center - Altamonte Springs, Florida
• Records: Carthage 7-7, UW-Superior 3-10

Match One

Singles Competition: 

1. Xingchen Liu (CAR) def. Lucille Chamberlin (STM) 6-1, 6-3
2. Giana Apostoli (CAR) def. Alayna Campbell (STM) 6-2, 3-6, 6-2
3. Emma Kealy (STM) def. Luana da Silva (CAR) 6-4, 4-6, 6-2
4. Leah Hosang (STM) def. Giovanna Mendes (CAR) 6-4, 6-4
5. Kathleen McLeod (STM) def. Sierra Sonnemaker (CAR) 3-6, 7-5, 1-0(6)
6. Evelyn Demblans-Dechans (STM) def. Maddie Kearney (CAR) 6-3, 6-1

Doubles Competition:

1. Liu/Apostoli (CAR) def. Campbell/Kealy (STM) 8-0
2. Chamberlin/Hosang (STM) def. Mendes/Manojlovic (CAR) 8-4
3. Demblans-Dechans/McLeod (STM) def. Sonnemaker/Weis (CAR) 8-4

Order of Finish: 

• Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (1,2,3,4,6,5)

Match Two

Singles Competition: 

1. Ebba Rosberg (STA) def. Xingchen Liu (CAR) 6-3, 6-1
2. Viktoriia Pavlovets (STA) def. Giana Apostoli (CAR) 6-2, 7-5
3. Samnta Villegas Robles (STA) def. Luana da Silva (CAR) 6-0, 6-0
4. Amaia Balaguer Brau (STA) def. Giovanna Mendes (CAR) 6-0, 6-0
5. Giovanna Jallas (STA) def. Sasha Manojlovic (CAR) 6-0, 6-2
6. Alba Guijo Parra (STA) def. Marie Weis (CAR) 6-2, 5-7, 1-0(4)

Doubles Competition:

1. Silins/Villegas Robles (STA) def. Liu/Apostoli (CAR) 6-3
2. Balaguer Brau/Palero (STA) def. Ferreira/Manojlovic (CAR) 6-1
3. Gak/Jallas (STA) def. Mendes/Sonnemaker (CAR) 6-1

Order of Finish: 

• Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (5,4,3,1,2,6)

Match Three

Singles Competition: 

1. Xingchen Liu (CAR) def. Katherine Taylor (TRA) 6-3, 6-4
2. Giana Apostoli (CAR) def. Grace Gardner (TRA) 4-6, 6-4, 1-0(7)
3. Jessica Burton (TRA) def. Luana da Silva (CAR) 6-0, 6-0
4. Sierra Sonnemaker (CAR) def. Christina Duvall (TRA) 6-3, 6-2
5. Marie Weis (CAR) def. Maria Hayes (TRA) 2-6, 6-4, 1-0 (7)
6. Maddie Kearney (CAR) def. Maddy Williams (TRA) 6-1, 6-4

Doubles Competition:

1. Apostoli/Liu (CAR) def. Taylor/Gardner (TRA) 8-4
2. Burton/Hayes (TRA) def. Manojlovic/Mendes (CAR) 8-4
3. Duvall/Williams (TRA) def. Ferreira/da Silva (CAR) 8-4

Order of Finish: 

• Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (4,5,1,6,2,3)

Match Four

Singles Competition: 

1. Xingchen Liu (CAR) def. Andreina Tejada (UWS) 6-3, 6-0
2. Giana Apostoli (CAR) def. Marina Dostal (UWS) 6-2, 6-2
3. Giovanna Mendes (CAR) def. Courtney Brandt (UWS) 6-0, 6-0
4. Marie Weis (CAR) def. Brooke Wilfong (UWS) 6-3, 6-0
5. Maddie Kearney (CAR) def. Haley Quick (UWS) 6-1, 6-0
6. Sasha Manojlovic (CAR) def. Daylyn Drew (UWS) 6-2, 6-1

Doubles Competition:

1. Apostoli/Liu (CAR) def. Tejada/Brandt (UWS) 8-1
2. Manojlovic/Weis (CAR) def. Kukowski/Hanson (UWS) 8-2
3. Mendes/Sonnemaker (CAR) def. Wilfong/Drew (UWS) 8-3

Order of Finish: 

• Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (6,4,1,2,3,5)

 

• Women's tennis, likely begrudgingly, will return home to Kenosha's sub-30 degree temperatures after competing in Florida all week. The team's first dual match after returning home will be against the Foresters of Lake Forest College on Sunday, March 26 at 10 a.m.