Aggies Capsize Commodores to Advance to SEC Semifinals

NORMAN – The No. 2 Texas A&M women's tennis team torpedoed the No. 14 Vanderbilt Commodores, 4-0, in Friday's SEC Championship quarterfinal action at Oklahoma's Headington Family Tennis Center
 
The Maroon & White advanced to Saturday's semifinal round. Texas A&M (22-4) faces No. 3 Auburn as the Aggies look for their sixth consecutive SEC Championship final round appearance.
 
Texas A&M wrangled away the doubles point after falling behind early. The Commodores' Erin Pearce/Mia Yamakita prevailed over Lexington Reed/Daria Smetannikov on court 3. The Maroon & White responded with a pair of top 12 wins. No. 15 Lucciana Perez/Mia Kupres toppled No. 6 Celia-Belle Mohr on court 1 and No. 47 Violeta Martinez/Ilinca Amariei sealed the deal with a 6-4 triumph over Valeria Ray/Bridget Stammel on court 2.
 
No. 1 Perez landed the first blow in singles action, toppling No. 9 Bridget Stammel, 6-4, 6-3, on court 1. Perez improved to 23-0 in singles play. She owns five wins over ITA top 10 opponents.
 
Martinez followed quickly behind with a 6-4, 6-3 triumph over her own over Sophia Webster on court 5. The Illinois-transfer moved her record to 21-10, including 15-6 in dual action.
 
No. 62 Amariei shut down the match with her 7-6(5), 6-3 win against Erin Pearce on court 3. The Romania product improved to 7-2.
 
The three remaining courts found Aggies ready to pounce for the endgame. No. 41 Kupres led No. 30 Ray, 6-3, 5-3 on court 2. No. 123 Reed had the upper hand on Yamakita on court 4, 6-3, 5-5. No. 111 Smetannikov was ahead Trinetra Vijayakumar on court 6, 6-4, 5-1.
 
UP NEXT...
The Aggies battle the No. 3 Auburn Tigers in Saturday's SEC Championship semifinal action from Headington Family Tennis Center. First serves are slated for 12 p.m.
 
TEXAS A&M QUOTES
Head Coach Mark Weaver
On winning the match and clinching the championship...
"I was very pleased with the performance. I don't think we could ask for much more. Going into a tournament your first round match can oftentimes bring jitters. I didn't see any jitters or any doubt out there. We really played A-plus tennis all across the board. To not lose a set in singles to one of the top teams in the country is very impressive."
 
#2 Texas A&M 4, #14 Vanderbilt 0
SEC Championship - Quarterfinal
Headington Family Tennis Center – Norman, Oklahoma
 
SINGLES
#1 Lucciana Perez (A&M) def. #9 Bridget Stammel (VU) – 6-4, 6-3
#41 Mia Kupres (A&M) vs. #30 Valeria Ray (VU) – 6-3, 5-3, unfinished
#62 Ilinca Amariei (A&M) vs. Erin Pearce (VU) – 7-6(5), 6-3
#123 Lexington Reed (A&M) vs. Mia Yamakita (VU) – 6-3, 5-5, unfinished
Violeta Martinez (A&M) vs. Sophia Webster (VU) – 6-4, 6-3
#111 Daria Smetannikov (A&M) vs. Trinetra Vijayakumar (VU) – 6-4, 5-1, unfinished
Order – 1,5,3
 
DOUBLES
#15 Perez/Kupres (A&M) def. #6 Mohr/Webster (VU) - 6-3
#47 Martinez/Amariei (A&M) def. #11 Ray/Stammel (VU) - 6-4
Pearce/Yamakita (VU) def. Reed/Smetannikov (A&M) - 6-2
Order - 3,1,2
 
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