SUMTER, S.C. – Monday was championship day at the 2021 ITA Southeast Regional Qualifiers from the Palmetto Tennis Center in Sumter, South Carolina. Carson-Newman women's tennis saw senior Ana Carla Resende (Minas Gerais, Brazil) make her way to the final day of action as she had yet to drop a set in any of her previous matches heading into Monday's action.
Resende was in action to start Monday morning against 9th-seeded Mariana Ramirez in the women's single semifinals at 10:00 a.m. Resende continued to keep her strong start alive as she once again did not drop a set, winning 6-3, 6-0 over Ramirez and claiming a spot in the ITA women's singles finals.
The Brazil native would see her finals opponent be 1st-seeded Luisa Hrda. So far in the tournament, Hrda had yet to drop a set as well. In her semifinals match, Hrda went up against 4th-seeded Elena Gunfaus as Hrda would claim a spot in the finals after winning 6-3, 6-4 over Gunfaus.
"Ana Carla got down 4-0 in both sets today but battled back to win three straight games. She had a point to tie and lost it," head coach Jim Frederick said. "In the second set, she fought off two matche points at 5-2 down before getting it back to leading 6-5. She pulled a hamstring in the first set and battled through it the rest of the match."
After both not dropping a set through the entire tournament, both Hrda and Resende came out and fought for every point. After being down 4-0, Resende battled back to win three straight before eventually falling 6-3 in the first set to Hrda. The second set saw the same beginning as Resende faced an early 4-0 deficit. The second set was almost anything but over as Hrda held a 5-2 lead before Resende stormed back and made it 6-5 in her favor. She continued fighting in order to force a decisive third set, but Hrda was able to come back and claim the 7-6 (3) result in the second set.
With her second-place finish overall, this marks the highest individual finish for Resende at the event after competing in consolation bracket action when she last appeared for C-N at the ITAs in 2019.
Resende and the rest of the Carson-Newman women's tennis program will be back on the courts from October 8 to October 10 as they take part in the Young Harris Tournament from Young Harris, Ga.
"I was very proud of Ana Carla's mental toughness today. It shows the fight that not only her but our entire team has," Frederick said.
Be sure to follow all things Carson-Newman women's tennis during the 2021-22 season via cneagles.com and all of Carson-Newman's social media platforms.
