No. 14 Georgia tops Gamecocks in SEC quarterfinals

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (April 22, 2022) - The 14th-ranked University of Georgia women's tennis team defeated to the 28th-ranked South Carolina Gamecocks 4-2 Friday afternoon, in the quarterfinals of the Southeastern Conference women's tennis tournament.

"Just a great match," said Georgia head coach Jeff Wallace. "South Carolina played unbelievable and for us it was really nice to get the win today. I thought our doubles played great, but unfortunately we came up short... Meg (Kowalski) did a great job of tying the match up at one all, getting a quick point on the board. After Morgan (Coppoc) won the tiebreaker in her first set, I thought the momentum went our way from that point on."

In doubles, Georgia (16-5, 10-3 SEC) dropped two of three to South Carolina (14-10, 8-5 SEC). The tandem of Morgan Coppoc and Ania Hertel dominated Ayana Akli and Ana Cruz 6-0, to open the day. The Freshman duo of Mai Nirundorn and Dasha Vidmanova fell to No. 22 Sarah Hamner and Misa Malkin 7-5, while Meg Kowalski and Mell Reasco dropped a tightly contested match on court two 7-6(5) to Gracie Mulville and Megan Davies.

In singles play, Georgia earned wins from No. 24 Reasco, No. 120 Kowalski, Coppoc, and Nirundorn. Kowalski earned the first point of the day for the Bulldogs, cruising to a 6-1, 6-2 win over No. 119 Elise Mills. She was quickly followed by Nirundorn who topped Gracie Mulville 7-5, 6-3. With the match tied at two apiece, Reasco defeated No. 5 Sarah Hamner 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 in a thrilling three-set match to give UGA the lead. Coppoc closed out the match with a 7-6(4), 6-2 win over tch with a 7-6(4), 6-2 win over Megan Davies. No. 84 Vidmanova fell to No. 54 Ayana Akli 6-4, 6-0.

Next up, the Bulldogs will face the winner of match 10 (Auburn vs. Tennessee) on Saturday, April 23 at 3 p.m.