Mid-American Conference

MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE ANNOUNCES WOMEN’S TENNIS PLAYER AND DOUBLES TEAM OF THE WEEK
 
MAC Women’s Tennis Singles Player of the Week
Brindtha Ramasamy, Miami – Freshman, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Miami freshman Brindtha Ramasamy at No. 1 singles went a perfect 2-0 last week at the top of the lineup, starting with a 4-6, 6-2, 1-0 victory over Harvard's two-time Ivy League First-Team senior Erica Oosterhout. Ramasamy followed that up with a dominating 6-1, 6-2 win over Boston University's Remi Ramos Saturday in a 5-2 RedHawk victory.
 
Additional Women’s Singles Nominees:
Rita Pedroso, Akron – Junior, Porto, Portugal (Escola Secundaria Garcia de Orta)
Akron junior Rita Pedroso went 2-0 at No. 1 and No. 3 singles last week in helping the Zips to a 4-0 record to start the Spring slate. In the win at St. Bonventure, she claimed a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Andrea Roque at the No. 3 spot. Moving up to No. 1 in the win over Niagara, Pedroso defeated Chhinda Som in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3. Overall, Pedroso stands 9-4 in singles action and a perfect 3-0 in spring action and is majoring in international business.
 
Peyton Gollhofer, Ball State – Senior, Cartersville, Ga. (Laurel Springs Academy)
Ball State senior Peyton Gollhofer at No. 4 singles went 2-0 this past weekend when the Cardinals played two matches on the road in Louisville, Ky. Gollhofer opened the weekend with a straight set, 6-3, 6-4, win at the No. 4 position over Louisville’s Diana Wong. Gollhofer then remained perfect this spring (3-0) after helping the Cardinals to a 4-3 victory over Northern Kentucky Saturday. Gollhofer took down Katja Dijanezevic, 6-3, 6-0, at the No. 4 spot.
 
Jovana Percic, Northern Illinois – Junior, Brcko, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Northern Illinois junior Jovana Pecic at No. 1 singles went 1-1 at No. 1 singles for NIU in her first two dual matches of the season. She won her first match of the spring helping NIU to a 4-3 victory over Milwaukee when the Huskie junior scored a straight set, 7-5, 7-6 (8-6) victory over Alex Belle. She dropped a tough, 6-2, 7-6, match to Natalija Popovic of Maquette in her second match of the weekend in the Huskies, 7-0 setback to the Golden Eagles.
 
Denise Azcui, Western Michigan – Senior, Bloomington, Ind. (Bloomington South HS)
Western Michigan senior Denise Azcui at No. 1 singles and No. 2 singles went 2-0 on the week during the Bronco sweeps over IUPUI and Chicago State, winning 7-6, 6-3 at No. 1 over IUPUI and 7-6, 6-4 at the No. 2 spot, improving her singles record to 4-1 during dual-match competition. Azcui and the Broncos' 4-1 start to 2019 marks the program's best start to a spring campaign since 2016. 
 
 
MAC Women’s Tennis Doubles Team of the Week
Rita Pedroso, Akron – Junior, Porto, Portugal (Escola Secundaria Garcia de Orta)
Miruna Vasilescu, Akron – Sophomore, Ulm, Germany (Friedrich-List Schule)
 
Akron junior Rita Pedroso and sophomore Miruna Vasilescu at No. 1 doubles went 2-0 last week and helped the Zips to a 4-0 record to open the Spring slate. In the win at St. Bonaventure, the duo defeated Penelope Abreu and Andrea Roque, 6-3. In the victory over Niagara, the duo also claimed a 6-3 win. Pedroso and Vasilescu are 8-3 in doubles action overall and 3-1 this spring.  Pedroso is an international business major, while Vasilescu is a human resource management major. 
 
Additional Women’s Doubles Teams of the Week Nominees:
Sarah Swiderski, Ball State – Senior, Wesley Chapel, Fla. (Saddlebrook Prep)
Victoria Sec, Ball State – Sophomore, New York, N.Y. (John McEnroe Academy)
 
Ball State senior Sarah Swiderski and sophomore Victoria Sec at No. 2 doubles went 2-0 last weekend for the Cardinals in double action. The No. 2 doubles tandem started off with a 6-3 upset over Louisville’s Dina Chaika and Nikolina Jovi. Swiderski and Sec then closed the weekend out by clinching the doubles point over Northern Kentucky. Swiderski and Sec after posting a 6-1 take down over Kaja Dijanezevic and Elizabeth Rozin.
 
Paula Comella, Bowling Green – Senior, Ciutadella de Menorca, Spain (Ies Cteib)
Marharita-Sophia Tavpash, Bowling Green – Senior, Lviv, Ukraine (Lviv Linguistic Gymnasium)
 
Bowling Green senior Paula Comella and senior Marharita-Sophia Tavpash at No. 1 doubles led 5-2 at Notre Dame in an unfinished match during the Falcons 7-0 loss to the Fighting Irish. The duo jumped out to a 4-0 lead to give them an early advantage against Notre Dame's Bess Waldram and Brooke Broda.  However, the duo were unable to finish the match due to the other doubles concluding in favor of Notre Dame. 
 
Katja Fevralev, Western Michigan – Senior, Bielefeld, Germany
Kristina Tiraspolsky, Western Michigan – Freshman, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
 
Western Michigan senior Katja Fevralev and freshman Kristina Tiraspolsky at No. 1 doubles went 2-0 during a pair of 7-0 victories last Saturday.  The duo won 6-3 over Gabrielle Ochalik/Christina Stankovic from IUPUI and 6-1 over Goncharova/Iesha Shepherd from Chicago State, improving to 5-1 overall on the season. Fevralev is a fashion merchandising & design major, while Tiraspolsky is a pre-business major.