Score: USF 4, VCU 3
Location: Tampa, Fla.
Records: VCU 7-6 (1-0 Atlantic 10), USF 5-6 
 
The Short Story: VCU fell to USF, 4-3, in a match that came down to the final court on Wednesday afternoon.
 
Opening Serve

• Both teams entered the match having gone 4-2 in their last six contests. USF most recently earned a 6-1 victory over No. 57 Penn on Monday and a 5-2 win over Stetson, whom the Rams will face on Friday. VCU picked up wins over Appalachian State last weekend and a 4-0 sweep of Georgetown. As their similar form suggested, the match played out accordingly, coming down to the final court with four matches featuring some form of tiebreak to decide the outcome.

Doubles

• VCU claimed the doubles point to open the match. The Rams jumped out early, holding 2-1 leads on all three courts in the opening stages. Sofia Jane Thorne and Andrea Magallanes finished first on Court 2 with a 6-3 victory. USF responded on Court 3, where Sara Alba and Viktoria Lackova fell 6-3 to even the doubles point. The deciding match came on Court 1, where Mariam Ibrahim and Tania Isabel Andrade Sabando led 4-2 before extending the advantage to 5-3. Just as USF mounted a push to close the gap to 5-4, the Rams held off to secure a 6-4 win and claim the first point of the match.

Singles

• Tania Isabel Andrade Sabando came away victorious after battling through a tightly contested opening set on Court 2. The first set featured several momentum swings, with neither player able to fully separate. After building leads of 3-2 and 5-2, the set was pushed to a tiebreak, where Andrade secured the 7-6(6) win. Following the competitive opening set, the second quickly swung in Andrade's favor as she shut the door on any chance of a third set, closing out a 6-1 victory to even the match for the Rams. With the win, Andrade improved to four wins in her last five singles matches.
• Andrea Magallanes also secured a straight-set victory on Court 5 in a match that played out much like Andrade's earlier result. The opening set was tight from the start, with the two players level at 2-2 before momentum briefly swung in favor of USF's Amelie Drukerova as Magallanes faced a 5-3 deficit. Despite this, Magallanes battled her way back into the set, winning three of the next four games to force a tiebreak. In the tiebreak, she held her composure and secured the opening set 7-6(6). In the second set, Magallanes continued her momentum and closed out the match with a 6-2 victory to once again level the match for the Rams.

Singles results
1. Melisa Senli (USF) def. Sofia Jane Thorne (VCU) 6-4, 6-1
2. Tania Isabel Andrade Sabando (VCU) def. Josefine Falster (USF) 7-6(6), 6-1
3. Margherita Marcon (USF) def. Mariam Ibrahim (VCU) 6-3, 2-6, 7-6(5)
4. Francesca Miglio (USF) def. Viktoria Lackova (VCU) 6-2, 6-3 
5. Andrea Magallanes (VCU) def. Amelie Drukerova (USF) 7-6(6), 6-2
6. Loana Vargas (USF) def. Elicia Kim (VCU) 6-3, 7-6(4)
 
Doubles results
1. Mariam Ibrahim / Tania Isabel Andrade Sabando (VCU) def. Amelie Drukerova / Josefine Falster (USF) 6-4
2. Sofia Jane Thorne / Andrea Magallanes (VCU) def. Margherita Marcon / Sienna Leeson (USF) 6-3
3. Francesca Miglio / Melisa Senli (USF) def. Sara Alba / Viktoria Lackova (VCU) 6-3
 
Order of Finish: Doubles: 2, 3, 1    Singles: 4, 1, 2, 5, 6
 
Up Next: VCU will be back in action on Friday, March 13, as they take on Stetson at noon.