Tennis Wins Four Matches on Opening Day of Hokie Fall Invite

BLACKSBURG, Va.— Sophomore Anna Smith and freshmen Victoria Walter and Liz Stefancic each won their first rounds singles matches in straight sets lead Marshall Friday at the Hokie Fall Invite.

"I saw some good improvement from our team from last weekend to this weekend," head coach John Mercer said. "I thought we competed well in our singles matches."

Marshall went 3-1 as a team in singles matches, with Madi Ballow's three-set loss to VCU's Kanako Yano, 6-2, 6-7 (7), 6-4, being the only setback. Walter cruised to a 6-0, 6-1 win over Georgia Southern's Hannah Daniel, while Smith defeated Radford's Malin Falk, 6-3, 7-5. Stefancic closed Marshall's singles play with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Delaware's Sarah Whited.

Marshall didn't fare as well in the doubles brackets, winning just one of its four matches played. Smith and Ballow suffered an 8-3 loss to Abby Amos and Daniela Voloh of James Madison and a 9-3 loss to Appalachian State's Heidi Swope and Maria Jose Zacarias. Walter and Stefancic lost their opening round match to JMU's Emma Petersen and Daria Afanasyeva, 8-2, but rebounded to pick up an 8-5 win over Radford's Tyler Blalock and Anastasia Belyaeva in the consolation bracket.

The Thundering Herd continues play in the Hokie Fall Invite Saturday at 9 a.m. Walter and Stefancic will play for a spot in the consolation finals of the doubles bracket. Walter, Stefancic and Smith are all in contention for flight wins in their respective singles brackets.

FRIDAY'S RESULTS
Doubles
Abby Amos/Daniela Voloh (James Madison) def. Anna Smith/Madi Ballow (Marshall); 8-3
Heidi Swope/Maria Jose Zacarias (Appalachian State) def. Anna Smith/Madi Ballow (Marshall); 9-3
Emma Petersen/Daria Afanasyeva (James Madison) def. Victoria Walter/Liz Stefancic (Marshall); 8-2
Victoria Walter/Liz Stefancic (Marshall) def. Tyler Blalock/Anastasia Belyaeva (Radford); 8-5
Singles
Anna Smith (Marshall) def. Malin Falk (Radford); 6-3, 7-5
Kanako Yano (VCU) def. Madi Ballow (Marshall); 6-2, 6-7 (7), 6-4
Victoria Walter (Marshall) def. Hannah Daniel (Georgia Southern); 6-0, 6-1
Liz Stefancic (Marshall) def. Sarah Whited (Delaware); 6-4, 6-3

SATURDAY'S SCHEDULE
Doubles
Christina Jordan/Giovanna Caputo (West Virginia) vs. Victoria Walter/Liz Stefancic (Marshall) – 9 a.m.
Singles
Nika Kozar (Virginia Tech) vs. Anna Smith (Marshall) – 10 a.m.
Anna Smith (Marshall) vs. TBD – not before 1 p.m.
Victoria Walter (Marshall) vs. Diane Flament (James Madison) – not before 10 a.m.
Victoria Walter (Marshall) vs. TBD – not before 1 p.m.
Olivia Rohrbacher (Penn State) vs. Liz Stefancic (Marshall) – not before 11:30 a.m.
Liz Stefancic (Marshall) vs. TBD – not before 3:30 p.m.
Madi Ballow (Marshall) vs. Giovanna Caputo (West Virginia) – not before 12:30 p.m.
Madi Ballow (Marshall) vs. TBD – not before 3:30 p.m.

For the latest information about Marshall tennis, follow on Twitter at @Herd_Tennis, on Facebook at Herd Tennis and online at HerdZone.com.

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Tennis Wins Four Matches on Opening Day of Hokie Fall Invite

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Players Mentioned

Madi Ballow

Anna Smith

Liz Stefancic

Victoria Walter

Marshall University Athletics