Crimmel, Tatafu Shine in Loss to Kennesaw State

VICKSBURG, Miss. – Zoe Crimmel and Amelia Tatafu played strong for Alcorn on Friday despite the Braves suffering a tough 7-0 loss to visiting Kennesaw State in a non-conference women's tennis match taking place at Halls Ferry Tennis Courts in Vicksburg, Mississippi.
 
For Alcorn (3-12), interim head coach Kersten Vanem-Walker deployed a lineup consisting of four freshmen on the day. One of the youngest teams in the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC), the Braves tout five freshmen and three juniors on this year's squad.
 
Kennesaw State (3-3) wasted no time establishing control, claiming the doubles point by winning the first two courts before the third match was left unfinished. Ema Baraniakova and Sofia Madrid took down Alcorn's freshmen combination Amelia Tatafu and Hana Bajramovic 6-1 at No. 1 doubles, while KSU's Laura Nadaska and Izabelle Persson handled the Braves' Natalija Nikolic and Katherine Grados 6-4 at No. 2.
 
The Owls carried that momentum into singles play, where they were dominant across all six courts.
 
Rianna Coreisa posted the most decisive result of the afternoon, defeating Braves freshman Taylor Briffa 6-0, 6-0 at No. 5.
 
Laura Nadaska was equally dominant for the Owls at No. 4, dropping just one game in a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Natalija Nikolic of Alcorn. Sofia Madrid, Maria Ivankovic, Izabelle Persson, and Terezia Baraniakova each won in straight sets to complete the shutout.
 
However, for the Braves Zoe Crimmel was able to take five games from KSU's Persson across the two sets. And equally impressive was a strong showing from Tatafu at the No. 2 spot with four games under her belt in the match.
 
"I thought our No. 2 and No. 3 singles showed a lot of fight and positivity out there today," said Vanem-Walker afterwards. "That's something we can build on as we get ready for the SWAC Pod. Forward and up. That's where we want to keep seeing our progression each match, and today was another step in the right direction against a very talented team.
 
For the next set of matches, the Purple and Gold venture to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where Southern (La.) will host the first SWAC Pod event of the spring. The Braves will face off against Bethune-Cookman (March 6) and Florida A&M (March 7), respectively.
 
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COMPLETE RESULTS
Singles Competition
1. Sofia Madrid (KSU) def. Hana Bajramovic (ALC) 6-1, 6-1
2. Maria Ivankovic (KSU) def. Amelia Tatafu (ALC) 6-2, 6-2
3. Izabelle Persson (KSU) def. Zoe Crimmel (ALC) 6-2, 6-3
4. Laura Nadaska (KSU) def. Natalija Nikolic (ALC) 6-1, 6-0
5. Rianna Coreisa (KSU) def. Taylor Briffa (ALC) 6-0, 6-0
6. Terezia Baraniakova (KSU) def. Katherine Grados (ALC) 6-2, 6-1
 
Doubles Competition
1. Ema Baraniakova/Sofia Madrid (KSU) def. Amelia Tatafu/Hana Bajramovic (ALC) 6-1
2. Laura Nadaska/Izabelle Persson (KSU) def. Natalija Nikolic/Katherine Grados (ALC) 6-4
3. Zoe Crimmel/Oihane Villanueva Lopez (ALC) vs. Terezia Baraniakova/Maria Ivankovic (KSU) 5-4, unfinished