From Washington University Athletics
Washington University in St. Louis senior Grace Deering and freshman Ally Persky won the doubles championship to highlight play at the 2017 Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Central Regional held Friday-Sunday at Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio.
Deering and Persky, the No. 2 seed in the 64-team draw, defeated No. 4 seed Aboubakare and Oku from Kenyon 6-4, 7-6 (2) in the championship match. The duo ousted three 9-16 seeds en route to the title match.
"It was a solid weekend by all our Bears at Oberlin! I am so proud of and happy for Grace Deering and Ally Persky's ITA Central Region Doubles Title. They competed with heart and determination this weekend!" said head coach Kelly Stahlhuth.
Freshmen Grace Hederick and Ashley Lessen also made a run to the quarterfinals in doubles. Hederick and Lessen upset the No. 7 seed from Hope in the second round and a 9-16 seed from DePauw in the third round.
In singles, Deering and Lessen both advanced to the semifinals before falling in straight sets to a pair of student-athletes from Chicago. Deering, a 9-16 seed, upset No. 4 seed Aboubakare 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 in the third round before rolling past No. 9-16 seed Paolucci from Case Western Reserve 6-0, 6-1 in the quarterfinals.
Lessen, also a 9-16 seed, recorded three-straight three-set victories to reach the quarterfinals. She upset No. 7 seed Bandrowski from Hope in the third round and then ousted 9-16 seed Halicka from Illinois Tech in the quarterfinals 6-4, 7-5.
By winning the Regional doubles title, Deering and Persky advance to the 2017 ITA Oracle Cup on Wednesday-Sunday, Oct. 11-15, at Rome Tennis Center in Rome, Georgia.
With the nine victories, Deering moved into a tie with Kat Copiozo for 17th on the all-time WashU wins list with 111.
The ITA Oracle Cup is comprised of eight regional champions (and/or at-large selections) for both singles and doubles from NCAA Divisions II and III, NAIA and Junior/Community Colleges. The singles and doubles champions at each divisional level then compete to become the overall "Super Bowl" champions.