The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
Women''s ITA Regional @ Ohio State
Kuvakina, Shkundina Advance in USTA/ITA Midwest Regional Singles Qualifier
October 20 | Women's Tennis
USTA/ITA Midwest Regional Championships Central
COLUMBUS – University of Akron sophomore Natalia Kuvakina and freshman Olga Shkundina each advanced to the qualifying singles round of 16 at the USTA/ITA Midwest Regional Championships on Thursday at Ohio State. The event runs through Tuesday.
Each UA player won a pair of matches to pull within one victory of a spot in the 48-player main draw.
Click the link at the top of this article to access updated draws, live match results and a complete tournament schedule.
Kuvakina topped Detroit's Amanda Cornwell 6-0, 6-2 and Cleveland State's Nicole Janek by the same score. Shkundina defeated Eastern Michigan's Ankita Bhatia 6-2, 6-3 and DePaul's Rebecca Mitrea 7-6 (5), 6-3. Mitrea was seeded fifth in the bracket and had an opening-round bye.
Kuvakina will face Ohio State's Tiffany Dittmer (seeded seventh) in Friday's round of 16, while Shkundina will take on Bowling Green's Maddie Eccleston. The winners slide into the main draw competition that begins on Saturday.
Three other Zips also competed in today's singles qualifier, with juniors and identical twins Angelika Jogasuria and Angelina Jogasuria, and sophomore Ksenia Berestetska each dropping their first matches.
UA senior Zara Harutyunyan and junior Prang Pantusart pre-qualified for the singles main draw, and will also comprise one of three Zips teams in the doubles main draw competition that gets underway on Friday. The Jogasuria sisters will team up in doubles as will Shkundina and Berestetska.
The winners of the event's singles and doubles main draw earn a berth to the USTA/ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships on Nov. 3-6 at the USTA–Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y.
For more information on each 2011 USTA/ITA Regional Championships site and the National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships, visit www.itatennis.com. Fans can also follow the ITA on Facebook and Twitter.
Players Mentioned
