No. 19 Clemson Falls to No. 6 Georgia

CLEMSON, SC – The 19th-ranked Clemson women’s tennis team fell to No. 6 Georgia, 5-2, on Saturday afternoon at the Clemson Indoor Tennis Center. Clemson (1-2) dropped its’ second straight match to a top-ten opponent, but will get a chance to redeem themselves against No. 30 South Carolina (3-1) on Sunday at noon in Clemson.

Clemson fell to 23-23 all-time against the Bulldogs, who won for the fifth straight time over the Tigers.

The Tigers dropped the doubles point, as Georgia took 8-4 wins on court one and court two. The match had been tied, 4-4 on two, but Lauren Herring and Mia King took four straight games off Romy Koelzer and Ani Miao. Beatrice Gumulya and Liz Jeukeng fought off a 5-1 deficit to take a 7-5 lead over No. 22 Maho Kowase and Lilly Kimbell, but their match was called as the point was decided.

Clemson looked to take momentum early, taking the first set on courts two, three, and four.

Beatrice Gumulya was the only one of those to be able to earn a win. She defeated Silvia Garcia, 7-5, 6-1 on court three and improved to 9-1 on the season, and 20-1 in her last 21 matches. Ani Miao also earned a three-set win after dropping the first set, 6-1. She downed Lilly Kimbell, 1-6, 6-3, 1-0 (10-8) to pull out the win and give the Tigers their second point.

No. 69 Romy Koelzer won the first set against No. 54 Kate Fuller, but the Bulldog junior fought back for a 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 win. Jeukeng won her first set over No. 18 Maho Kowase, who responded with a win in the second set. Jeukeng got down early in the third set, 4-1, but got back on serve, 4-5. However, Kowase earned a break to clinch the match. It was the second straight time Kowase clinch against the Tigers, as her three-set win in the NCAA Tournament last season knocked the Tigers out.

Koroleva dropped her decision to No. 8 Lauren Herring on court one to fall to 7-4 on the season and 4-4 against nationally ranked foes.

#6 Georgia 5, #19 Clemson 2Clemson Indoor Tennis Center

Doubles:1. Fuller/Garcia (UGA) def. Koroleva/Dewar (CU), 8-42. Herring/King (UGA) def. Miao/Koelzer (CU), 8-43. Gumulya/Jeukeng (CU) led #22 Kowase/Kimbell (UGA), 7-5Order of Finish: 2,1

Singles:1. #8 Lauren Herring (UGA) def. #32 Yana Koroleva (CU), 6-4, 6-32. #18 Maho Kowase (UGA) def. Liz Jeukeng (CU), 4-6, 6-2, 6-43. #77 Beatrice Gumulya (CU) def. Silvia Garcia (UGA), 7-5, 6-14. #54 Kate Fuller (UGA) def. #69 Romy Koelzer, 3-6, 6-2, 6-25. Mia King (UGA) def. Tristen Dewar (CU), 6-2, 6-36. Ani Miao (CU) def. Lilly Kimbell (UGA), 1-6, 6-3, 1-0 (10-8)Order of Finish: 1,3,4,2*,5,6