SAN ANTONIO — Producing a big-result day in Houston at the George R. Brown Tennis Center, both Ekua Youri and Letizia Corsini move onto the quarterfinals for UTSA women’s tennis at the American Athletic Conference Individual Championships after winning both of their singles matches on the opening day of championship competition.
Youri (Sophomore/Gaborone, Botswana) played big in her opening match but finished the day with the biggest singles win of her young career, and one of the biggest wins for a Roadrunner overall. In the Round of 16 against the tournament’s No. 1 overall seed, Victoria Gomez O’Hayon from Florida Atlantic, Youri stayed strong in her second match of the day. Recovering from a 6-3 setback in the opening set, Youri rallied to claim victory in back-to-back sets and move on to the quarterfinal. Youri opened the day by putting away Wichita State’s Kristina Kudryavtseva in the Round of 32, 7-5, 6-3.
Also moving on to the next stage, Corsini started her singles competition by working back to a three-set victory over Charlotte’s Luci Aranda (3-6, 6-2, 7-5), going on to dispatch fifth-seeded Lilly Hutchings from Tulsa. Corsini made quick work of Hutchings, beating her in two sets by scores of 6-0 and 6-3.
The pair started out the day in doubles action, but unfortunately missed the opportunity to advance to the quarterfinal, falling to South Florida’s doubles tandem of Melisa Senli and Sienna Leeson, 8-5.
Both Roadrunners will be in quarterfinal action at 11:30 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 25, Youri facing Charlotte’s Sara Suchankova, while Corsini will match up with Rice’s Darya Schwartzman. A semifinals appearance is on the line in both sections of the bracket.
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