July 20, 2009

FORMER RAMS BATTLE IT OUT FOR MID-ATLANTIC OPEN CLAY COURT CHAMPIONSHIPS

RICHMOND, Va. – The McDonald’s Mid-Atlantic Open Clay Court Championships were played this past weekend at nearby Salisbury Country Club and the courts might as well have been painted black and gold.

Three former Rams, Tatsiana Uvarova, Olga Borisova and Kateryna Yergina, reached at least the semi-finals in both the mixed doubles and the women’s singles over the weekend.

Uvarova dropped a tough, two-hour plus singles championship match to top-seeded Petra Rampre. Borisova reached the semifinals in both the singles and mixed doubles tournaments, while Yergina fell in the championship of the mixed doubles.

In singles competition, the third-seeded Uvarova cruised through the first four rounds without dropping a set and battled Rampre, who is ranked No.378 on the women’s pro circuit, before falling 4-6, 7-6 (7-3), 1-6.

Borisova, seeded fourth in the tournament, won in straight sets in the round of 16 and battled past Melissa Schaub, 3-6, 7-6 (9), 6-3 in the quarterfinals before falling to top-seeded Rampre in the singles semi-finals.

On the mixed doubles side, Yergina teamed with Juan M. Stiegwardt and faced the team of Borisova and Carl R. Clark in the semifinals in a battle of former Rams.

Yergina and Stiegwardt were able to pull off a 6-4, 6-4 victory before being defeated by Rampre and her partner, Salifu Mohammed, in the finals.

Uvarova and Borisova both had All-American careers in the Black & Gold with Uvarova earning All-American singles honors in 2006 and Borisova teaming with Marianna Yuferova in 2005 for All-American doubles honors.

Yergina will be returning for her junior season in 2009-2010 and will look to lead back to the NCAA Tournament for a fifth consecutive year.