They’re undefeated no longer.
Going into their second-round match Thursday at the 2012 United States Tennis Association/ITA National Indoor Collegiate Championships in Flushing, N.Y., the Penn doubles pair of Sol Eskenazi and Sonya Latycheva fell just short in a 8-5 loss to Ashley Dai and Whitney Kay of North Carolina.
Earlier Thursday morning, the Penn duo took care of business against a Utah team of Tereza Bekerova and Paige Miles, but facing a UNC team with a first-round bye and fresh legs proved to be too much.
Despite the loss, one would be hard-pressed to see their performance in the regional championships and finals as anything but a success. Coach Sanela Kunovac confirmed as much before the match, measuring success as “the fact that we got here — the region was very tough.”
“It’s a pretty big deal,” Kunovac said of winning the regional championships. “Not usual, given that they are very young … I want them to really take a deep breath and experience the competition.”
Eskenazi, a sophomore, and Latycheva, a freshman, have a bright future ahead of them.
“We know how close and far we are, capable of being top 10 in the country,” Kunovac said.
While Eskenazi is a shorter lefty and Latycheva a tall right-hander, their skill sets complement each other well.
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“[Sonya] has a great forehand,” Eskenazi said. “So usually she’ll set up the point and I’ll finish it off.”
Kunovac echoed her player.
“They are very well matched. [You] don’t want two identical players,” she said. “Both cover the net well.”
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