RAMS STAY HOT, ROLL PAST 25TH-RANKED VIRGINIA, 5-2

RICHMOND, Va. – The Virginia Commonwealth University women's tennis team arrived at Thalhimer Tennis Center on Saturday on a mission to keep their seven-game winning streak alive.

Their focus and determination was evident from the start rolling through all three doubles matches and the first three singles contest en route to a 5-2 win over in-state rival and 25th-ranked Virginia.

Sophomore Ana Bara (Oradea, Romania) and freshman Josefin Hjertquist (Spanga, Sweden) got things started with an 8-6 win in doubles and the veteran duo of Laura Burns (Hertford, England) and Kateryna Yergina (Kiev, Ukraine) locked down the doubles point with an 8-4 victory at #2 doubles.

The red-hot Rams then rolled to straight set wins at #4, #5 and #3 singles, respectively.

First, Burns steamrolled Jennifer Stevens, 6-4, 6-1 to pave the way for a 6-4, 6-2 win by Alex Bara over Hana Tomljanovic. That allowed Yergina to secure the VCU victory with a 7-5, 6-2 win over Erin Vierra.

Senior Olena Leonchuck (Kiev, Ukraine) continued her strong play with her 11th singles win of the year with a 6-3, 6-0 win over Maria Fuccillo at #6 singles.

The Rams will look to keep their streak alive when they travel to in-state and conference rival, Old Dominion, next Saturday. First serve is set for 1 p.m.  

#29 VCU 5, #25 Virginia 2

Doubles:
1. Ana Bara/Hjertquist def. Fraser/Stevens, 8-6
2. Burns/Yergina def. Hardenbergh/Vierra, 8-4
3. Alex Bara/Leonchuk def. Tomljanovic/Fuccillo, 8-6
Order of finish: 1,2,3

Singles:
1. #43 Lindsey Hardenbergh (UVA) def. Hjertquist, 2-6, 7-6, 10-7
2. Emily Fraser (UVA) def. Ana Bara, 7-6, 7-5
3. Yergina def. Erin Vierra (UVA), 7-5, 6-2
4. Burns def. Jennifer Stevens (UVA), 6-4, 6-1
5. Alex Bara def. Hana Tomljanovic (UVA), 6-4, 6-2
6. Leonchuk def. Maria Fuccillo (UVA), 6-3, 6-0
Order of finish: 4,5,3,2,1,6