Sophomore Lauren Sadaka unexpectedly came out as one of the top competitors for the women's tennis team this weekend at the Cissie Leary Invitational.
Last year, Sadaka was forced to cheer for her team from the sidelines due to a tendonitis injury in her wrist. This year, however, Sadaka came back in full force, making it to the quarterfinals of the home tournament.
"I did surprisingly well at this tournament considering [that] last year I was injured the whole season," said Sadaka, who was playing in one of her first matches since returning.
With such low expectations imposed on Sadaka, the victory was that much sweeter. She beat many top seeds, including Joanna Roth of Princeton and Sasha Abraham of Penn State. Against Abraham, it was quite a battle, but Sadaka pulled out the victory, 6-4, 6-7, 10-6.
"I just played my heart out," Sadaka said. "If you really want it, you have to fight for every point. I was really determined and had my whole team standing behind me, supporting me."
Camaraderie and good coaching were key elements in leading the Red and Blue to success. Penn coach Michael Dowd and assistant coach Sara Schiffman have pushed the team to do well this fall season. Schiffman, who previously played under Dowd, brings support and willpower to the coaching position.
"Sara always has a positive mindset," Sadaka said. "She has helped all of us so much."
In total, there were 64 players and 11 teams from all over the country who competed.
Four members of the team took part in quarterfinal action on Saturday. However, none advanced to the finals.
Junior Yulia Rivelis, who was seeded second in the tournament, beat Laura Holzberg of Penn State, 6-1, 6-3, to advance to the quarterfinals. However, Rivelis fell to Lena Litvak of Harvard, 7-5, 6-4. Last year at this same event, Rivelis advanced to the finals but was overpowered then, too.
Junior Julia Koulbitskaya, who was a top-8 seed, was also victorious in the singles matches - she easily beat Jenny Shular of Penn State, 6-0, 6-1. Koulbitskaya was later defeated by Stephanie Schnitter of Harvard.
Rivelis and Koulbitskaya made a good duo in the doubles matches. Seeded third, they successfully advanced to the finals, outplaying teams from Minnesota, Princeton and Harvard.
"Julia and Yulia are two of the best players on the team," Sadaka said. "They always are expected to do well, but it is hard to make finals in any tournament. Staying focused the whole weekend is not an easy task."
The duo was beat in the finals yesterday morning by Harvard's Schnitter and Litvak.
