ARLINGTON, Texas (September 22, 2024) - Lubbock Christian University's Lady Chaparrals had an impressive showing at the Women's Tennis ITA South Central Regional tournament, held at Arlington Tennis Center and hosted by Dallas Baptist University.
LCU's
Anastasiia Opolska led the charge, advancing to the semifinals of the singles bracket in the top flight. She claimed victories over UTD's Reika Nagai, Angelo State's Eva Schwartz, DBU's Andrea Delgado, and Emily Buchanan before falling to Midwestern State's Sofia Giraldo in straight sets. Opolska went 4-1 (is 6-1 on the season) and became the first Lady Chaps member to qualify for the semifinals in the annual event.
"
Anastasiia Opolska is our hardest worker," commented head coach
Jason Speegle. "Every day, she puts in extra reps, so it was no surprise to the coaches that she had such a great tournament."
Mariia Koroleva and
Andrea De Bernardo also contributed with strong singles performances, reaching the Round of 16 in the top flight.
In doubles action, De Bernardo and
Axelle Jacquemin made a deep run in the top doubles bracket. They reached the final after wins over TAMIU, Angelo State, and DBU, only to fall short in the championship match to Cameron, which came down to a tie-breaker. De Bernardo and Jacquemin are the first LCU doubles team to advance to the regional finals in the ITA event. They went 3-1 in Arlington and are now 8-1 on the season.
"Proud of the growth of this team," stated Speegle. "Every player continues to grow and mature as tennis players. Last year, we looked nervous at times. This year, we knew we belonged. Credit to the Cameron team. They made us work for every point and they made a couple more plays than we did."
LCU's depth was on display in the doubles competition as
Maizy Adams and
Alexandra Luders fought their way to the final in the "B" bracket before being edged by UTPB.
LCU has completed their fall schedule, but De Bernardo and Jacquemin are awaiting an at-large berth to the ITA Cup scheduled for Oct. 10-11 in Rome, Ga.
