EAST GREENSBORO – The North Carolina A&T women's tennis program did not win a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) match in 2020 or 2021. The Aggies did not win a Big South Conference match in 2022. But they were successful in their first attempt at winning a Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) match in 2023, topping the Towson Tigers 4-0 Friday afternoon at the Dudley High School Tennis Courts.
It marked the Aggies first conference win since beating Morgan State 4-3 on March 19, 2019. The Aggies are now 2-0 when they are at full strength, as they recently added Isabela Romanichen to the lineup after she recovered from injury.
"It was a big day; going from never winning in the Big South Conference or any matches to winning one in the CAA is pretty awesome," said A&T head coach Dejon Bivens.
The Aggies completed three doubles and three singles matches to improve to 5-4 overall and 1-0 in the CAA. A&T's Lana Caculovic and Romanichen took No. 1 doubles 6-4 over Lea Kosanovic and Olivia Rothfield before the Tigers evened the battle for the doubles point by winning at No. 3 doubles as Erin Gray and Sarah Pospischill beat Asima Sazan and Nour Gueblaoui 6-4.
The Aggies almost rallied to win at No. 3 doubles after falling behind 5-1. They made it a 5-4 before missing out on two opportunities to tie the match at 5. But Nuria Sanz and Cielo Tapia-Cruz clinched the doubles point with a 6-4 win over Sania Suchinsky and Nadeen Shrebati.
Sazan won at No. 6 singles by winning the first set 6-0 before her Shrebati retired in the second set. The Aggies claimed a 3-0 lead when Sanz defeated Gray at No. 3 singles, 6-0, 6-1. Sanz improved to 8-0 in singles play after the win.
Gueblaoui, who lost in doubles play, found redemption in singles. Gueblaoui defeated Suchinsky 6-3, 6-2, clinching the long-awaited conference win for A&T. Gueblaoui, a native of Tunisia, enjoyed playing in the warm weather on Friday.
"At first, I was tight and was down 3-2," said Gueblaoui about her singles matchup. "But then I started to focus more and play smarter, which made the difference and helped me win. I kept playing with that same level and motivation for the second set. It was a good day for the team, especially for me, playing in that weather. It made me feel at home. I'm proud of this win, and hopefully, we'll keep it up."
A&T will get another conference opponent from the Dudley High School Tennis Courts on Wednesday when they face the Delaware Blue Hens at 4 p.m.
