March 1, 2014

Box Score

GREENCASTLE, IN - Down 2-1 after doubles, the seventh-ranked Johns Hopkins women's tennis team rallied for a 6-3 win over 10th-ranked Pomona-Pitzer in the semifinals of the 2014 ITA National Team Indoor Championship. The win sets up a rematch of last year's championship match, as Hopkins (2-0) will face ninth-ranked Carnegie Mellon in the final.

The Sagehens took an early 1-0 lead in the match when Rosemary Pelch and Maddie Gordon defeated sophomore Olivia Kasten and freshman Ashnaa Rao, 8-6, at second doubles. The Blue Jays would answer with a win at third as junior Elaine Baik and freshman Mikey Barthelmass won 8-4 over Arthi Padmanabhan and Mae Coyiuto. The final doubles point came down to first, which fittingly went to a tiebreak. Pomona-Pitzer would take the point and the 2-1 lead into singles play when Sammy Chao and Lea Lynn Yen defeated senior Hailey Hogan and sophomore Sydney Lehman, 9-8.

Lehman quickly tied the match at two apiece as she beat Yen 6-1, 6-2 at third singles. Freshman Amanda Austi then came from behind to beat Chao 2-6, 7-6, 6-2 to give Hopkins a 3-2 lead. Coyiuto responded with a come-from-behind win over her own, defeating Rao 1-6, 7-6, 6-3 at second to even the match at three-all. It would come down to the final three singles matches and the Blue Jays won them all to advance to the title match for the second straight year. Hogan put the Jays up 4-3 with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Padmanabhan at fourth. Junior Shannon Herndon then clinched the win as she beat Gordon 6-0, 6-3 at sixth. Baik closed out the win with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Pelch at fifth.

Hopkins and Carnegie Mellon will square off for the 2014 ITA National Team Indoor Championship at 10:00 am on Sunday, March 2. The Blue Jays are seeking their second straight title.