ATHENS – The No. 12 Texas A&M women's tennis team secured its spot in the SEC Tournament Semifinals after a 4-0 sweep versus No. 32 Vanderbilt Friday at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex.
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Texas A&M (21-6) claimed the early lead against the Commodores (12-10) after taking the doubles point and never looked back. Carson Branstine/Nicole Khirin got things started for the Aggies, notching their first victory as a pair on court 2 over Valeria Ray/Bridget Stammel (6-3). Moments later, Lucciana Perez/Jeanette Mireles took down Anessa Lee/Amy Stevens on court 3 (6-3) to grab the 1-0 lead.
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Doubling the advantage for the Maroon & White was No. 1 Mary Stoiana, who defeated No. 77 Stammel on court 2 in straight sets (6-1, 6-3) to claim her eighth-straight win and 17th of the year against ranked opponents.
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No. 19 Khirin took care of Ray on court 3 in dominant fashion (6-1, 6-2) to give the Aggies a 3-0 lead. With her win, she secured her 20th victory of the season and is now 20-3 in dual match singles play.
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Perez dealt the match clinching blow to advance the Maroon & White to the semifinals on court 5 against Holly Staff (6-3, 6-3). She extended her win-streak to nine and giving A&M its ninth-straight victory.
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No. 44 Mia Kupres, Branstine and Mireles were all leading their matches before the overall result was clinched.
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COACH'S QUOTES
Head coach Mark Weaver on the team's overall performance …
"Overall, I am very pleased with our performance. When it is your first match of any championship it always takes a little bit to get your feet under you and I felt that somewhat in the doubles today. Vanderbilt had already had a match from the day before, so they came out and played well early on. We played excellent in singles and performed at a very high level overall as a group."
Up Next
The Aggies will take on No. 3 seeded Florida (16-7) in the semifinals on Saturday, April 20, with first serve set for 10 a.m. The Gators are on an 11-match win-streak and dropped only two games in SEC play, one of them being to Texas A&M, 4-3.
Match Results
Singles Results
(TAMU) Carson Branstine - (VU) No. 12 Celia-Belle Mohr (7-6(4), 3-2) unfinished
(TAMU) No. 1 Mary Stoiana Def. (VU) No. 77 Bridget Stammel (6-1, 6-3)
(TAMU) No. 19 Nicole Khirin Def. (VU) Valeria Ray (6-1, 6-2)
(TAMU) No. 44 Mia Kupres - (VU) Anessa Lee (6-1, 5-5) unfinished
(TAMU)Â Lucciana Perez Def. (VU) Holly Staff (6-3, 6-3)
(TAMU) Jeanette Mireles - (VU) Amy Stevens (6-2, 5-5) unfinished
Double Results
(VU) Celia-Belle Mohr/Holly Staff Def. (TAMU) No. 3 Mary Stoiana/Mia Kupres (6-2)
(TAMU)Â Carson Branstine/Nicole Khirin Def. (VU)Â Valeria Ray/Bridget Stammel (6-3)
(TAMU) Lucciana Perez/Jeanette Mireles Def. (VU) Anessa Lee/Amy Stevens (6-3)
FOLLOW THE AGGIES
Visit 12thman.com for more information on Texas A&M women's tennis. Fans can keep up to date with the A&M women's tennis team on Facebook, Instagram, and on X by following @AggieWTEN.
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Texas A&M (21-6) claimed the early lead against the Commodores (12-10) after taking the doubles point and never looked back. Carson Branstine/Nicole Khirin got things started for the Aggies, notching their first victory as a pair on court 2 over Valeria Ray/Bridget Stammel (6-3). Moments later, Lucciana Perez/Jeanette Mireles took down Anessa Lee/Amy Stevens on court 3 (6-3) to grab the 1-0 lead.
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Doubling the advantage for the Maroon & White was No. 1 Mary Stoiana, who defeated No. 77 Stammel on court 2 in straight sets (6-1, 6-3) to claim her eighth-straight win and 17th of the year against ranked opponents.
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No. 19 Khirin took care of Ray on court 3 in dominant fashion (6-1, 6-2) to give the Aggies a 3-0 lead. With her win, she secured her 20th victory of the season and is now 20-3 in dual match singles play.
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Perez dealt the match clinching blow to advance the Maroon & White to the semifinals on court 5 against Holly Staff (6-3, 6-3). She extended her win-streak to nine and giving A&M its ninth-straight victory.
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No. 44 Mia Kupres, Branstine and Mireles were all leading their matches before the overall result was clinched.
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COACH'S QUOTES
Head coach Mark Weaver on the team's overall performance …
"Overall, I am very pleased with our performance. When it is your first match of any championship it always takes a little bit to get your feet under you and I felt that somewhat in the doubles today. Vanderbilt had already had a match from the day before, so they came out and played well early on. We played excellent in singles and performed at a very high level overall as a group."
Up Next
The Aggies will take on No. 3 seeded Florida (16-7) in the semifinals on Saturday, April 20, with first serve set for 10 a.m. The Gators are on an 11-match win-streak and dropped only two games in SEC play, one of them being to Texas A&M, 4-3.
Match Results
Singles Results
(TAMU) Carson Branstine - (VU) No. 12 Celia-Belle Mohr (7-6(4), 3-2) unfinished
(TAMU) No. 1 Mary Stoiana Def. (VU) No. 77 Bridget Stammel (6-1, 6-3)
(TAMU) No. 19 Nicole Khirin Def. (VU) Valeria Ray (6-1, 6-2)
(TAMU) No. 44 Mia Kupres - (VU) Anessa Lee (6-1, 5-5) unfinished
(TAMU)Â Lucciana Perez Def. (VU) Holly Staff (6-3, 6-3)
(TAMU) Jeanette Mireles - (VU) Amy Stevens (6-2, 5-5) unfinished
Double Results
(VU) Celia-Belle Mohr/Holly Staff Def. (TAMU) No. 3 Mary Stoiana/Mia Kupres (6-2)
(TAMU)Â Carson Branstine/Nicole Khirin Def. (VU)Â Valeria Ray/Bridget Stammel (6-3)
(TAMU) Lucciana Perez/Jeanette Mireles Def. (VU) Anessa Lee/Amy Stevens (6-3)
FOLLOW THE AGGIES
Visit 12thman.com for more information on Texas A&M women's tennis. Fans can keep up to date with the A&M women's tennis team on Facebook, Instagram, and on X by following @AggieWTEN.