Oct. 7, 2010
PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. - Texas A&M's Nazari Urbina won her second-round match in the qualifying singles bracket to advance at the Riviera/ITA Women's All-American Championships at the Riviera Tennis Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif.
Urbina (pronounced nah-ZAR-ee ur-BEE-nah), a sophomore from Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico, won the first set, 6-4, against No. 65 Alicia Aguilar of San Diego State but found herself down, 3-0, in the second set. Urbina, ranked No. 33 in the ITA preseason rankings, was still trailing 4-1 in the second set when she reeled off five straight games to get the come-from-behind 6-4, 6-4 win.
Urbina will face 59th-ranked Noemie Scharle of Florida State in the round of 16 on Thursday morning, with the winner receiving a berth in the 32-player singles main draw.
Aggie senior Morgan Frank (Oldsmar, Fla.) was eliminated from the singles qualifying bracket after suffering a loss in the second round on Wednesday. Frank, a late-entry alternate who posted a 6-2, 6-2 first-round win against 36th-ranked Lutfiana Budiharto of Wichita State on Tuesday, jumped out to a 3-0 lead against Alex Cercone of Florida in the round of 32. Cercone however quickly gained momentum and went on to win, 6-3, 6-2 to advance.
Urbina and Frank are scheduled to open play in the 32-team main draw doubles tournament at 11 a.m. (CT) on Thursday, and will face No. 8 seed and eighth-ranked Taylor Marable and Hilary Bartlett of Princeton. Urbina and Frank are No. 45 in the preseason rankings.
For more information on the Riviera/ITA Championships, go to http://www.itatennis.com/Events/ITANationalChampionships/WomensAllAmerican.htm
Riviera/ITA All-American Championships, Qualifying Singles (64 players)
First Round, October 5
No. 33 Nazari Urbina (Texas A&M) def. No. 86 Ecaterina Vasenina (South Florida), 6-2, 6-1
No. 71 Morgan Frank (Texas A&M) def. No. 36 Lutfiana Budiharto (Wichita State), 6-2, 6-2
Second-Round, October 6
No. 33 Nazari Urbina (Texas A&M) def. No. 65 Alicia Aguilar (San Diego State), 6-4, 6-4
Alex Cercone (Florida) def. No. 71 Morgan Frank (Texas A&M), 6-3, 6-2
Round of 16, October 7
No. 33 Nazari Urbina (Texas A&M) vs. No. 59 Noemie Scharle (Florida State)
Riviera/ITA All-American Championships, Doubles Main Draw (32 teams)
First Round, October 7
Morgan Frank/Nazari Urbina (Texas A&M) vs. No. 8 Taylor Marable/Hilary Bartlett (Princeton)