.png&width=100&height=100&type=webp)
Saturday, February 17
Lynchburg, Va.
11:00 AM ET
Liberty University
4
vs
3
VCU
Lady Flames Come Back to Stomp VCU 4-3
2/17/2024 10:08:00 PM | Women's Tennis
LYNCHBURG, Va. – Daniella O'Neill completed the reverse sweep to hand VCU its first loss of the season with a 4-3 triumph on Saturday afternoon at the Liberty Indoor Tennis Center.
Liberty (5-1) begins a stretch of three matches in three consecutive days with a dramatic victory over VCU (8-1).
The Lady Flames nearly completed a monumental comeback in the doubles but came up just short. The Rams then picked up two swift victories on courts five and six in singles to take a commanding 3-0 lead. Liberty began to put the comeback pieces together with a two-set win by Marina Davtyan. The Lady Flames picked up key victories from Maria Juliana Parra Romero and Esther Lovato on courts one and two to even the match.
With the match hinging on O'Neill, the redshirt freshman making her first career appearance in the No. 3 singles slot, battled back from a disappointing first set to even the match with a 7-5 second set victory. Three sets were barely enough to decide a winner with the two competitors fighting to a tiebreak. O'Neill jumped out to a 4-2 lead and traded points to complete the miraculous comeback with a 2-6, 7-5, 7-6 (5) triumph.
The Lady Flames secure their first-ever victory over the in-state opponent in five tries.
"Our team faced a lot of adversity and we overcame that with heart, grit and intestinal fortitude. We played in a way to use our God-given gifts the best we could and that maximum level effort enabled those gifts to be used."
On the comeback effort
"It looked a little dire in moments, but our girls did a super job of not letting that bother them, that was the key. Marina's (Davtyan) was important to get on the board and then we got three amazing comebacks. To God be the Glory!"
Quote from Daniella O'Neill
"I still cannot believe how I managed to come back from a set down! The second set was not looking too good. If it weren't for my teammates standing by my side, giving me the fight and urge to come back, I would not be able to have done it. I thank Coach Kylie (Kuykendall) for going through the roller coaster with me and being there for me through it all. The job is not finished, we still have a couple more matches and we will keep it going. Go Flames! "
Liberty 4, VCU 3
Singles Competition
1. Esther Lovato (LIBERTYW) def. Yelizaveta Karlova (VCU-W) 3-6, 7-5, 6-0
2. M. Juliana P. Romero (LIBERTYW) def. T. Andrade Sabando (VCU-W) 6-1, 4-6, 6-3
3. Daniella O'Neill (LIBERTYW) def. Anja Draskovic (VCU-W) 2-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7-5)
4. Marina Davtyan (LIBERTYW) def. Emma Valletta (VCU-W) 6-4, 6-4
5. Emma Rizzetto (VCU-W) def. Maria Turchetto (LIBERTYW) 6-2, 6-1
6. Tiziana Rossini (VCU-W) def. Sadie Daavettila (LIBERTYW) 6-1, 6-3
Doubles Competition
1. #54 Yelizaveta Karlova/Emma Valletta (VCU-W) def. #59 Daniella O'Neill/Priscila Janikian (LIBERTYW) 6-1
2. M. Juliana P. Romero/Sadie Daavettila (LIBERTYW) vs. Tiziana Rossini/Emma Rizzetto (VCU-W) 6-6 (1-4), unfinished
3. Anja Draskovic/T. Andrade Sabando (VCU-W) def. Maria Turchetto/Marina Davtyan (LIBERTYW) 7-5
VCU 8-1
Liberty 5-1
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (5,6,4,2,1,3)
Official: Harrison, Harrison T-4:19
How it Happened
Doubles
Singles
Up Next
Liberty (5-1) prepares for two matches in two starting Sunday. The Lady Flames face Harvard (7-2) in a neutral site match hosted at Furman at 1 p.m. Sunday. Liberty then takes on Furman (1-5) Monday at 3 p.m.
Liberty (5-1) begins a stretch of three matches in three consecutive days with a dramatic victory over VCU (8-1).
The Lady Flames nearly completed a monumental comeback in the doubles but came up just short. The Rams then picked up two swift victories on courts five and six in singles to take a commanding 3-0 lead. Liberty began to put the comeback pieces together with a two-set win by Marina Davtyan. The Lady Flames picked up key victories from Maria Juliana Parra Romero and Esther Lovato on courts one and two to even the match.
With the match hinging on O'Neill, the redshirt freshman making her first career appearance in the No. 3 singles slot, battled back from a disappointing first set to even the match with a 7-5 second set victory. Three sets were barely enough to decide a winner with the two competitors fighting to a tiebreak. O'Neill jumped out to a 4-2 lead and traded points to complete the miraculous comeback with a 2-6, 7-5, 7-6 (5) triumph.
The Lady Flames secure their first-ever victory over the in-state opponent in five tries.
Thoughts from Head Coach Jeff MarenWhat a moment ?? @daniellaoneiill pic.twitter.com/giYaoFEgzw
— Liberty Women's Tennis (@LibertyWTennis) February 18, 2024
"Our team faced a lot of adversity and we overcame that with heart, grit and intestinal fortitude. We played in a way to use our God-given gifts the best we could and that maximum level effort enabled those gifts to be used."
On the comeback effort
"It looked a little dire in moments, but our girls did a super job of not letting that bother them, that was the key. Marina's (Davtyan) was important to get on the board and then we got three amazing comebacks. To God be the Glory!"
Quote from Daniella O'Neill
"I still cannot believe how I managed to come back from a set down! The second set was not looking too good. If it weren't for my teammates standing by my side, giving me the fight and urge to come back, I would not be able to have done it. I thank Coach Kylie (Kuykendall) for going through the roller coaster with me and being there for me through it all. The job is not finished, we still have a couple more matches and we will keep it going. Go Flames! "
Liberty 4, VCU 3
Singles Competition
1. Esther Lovato (LIBERTYW) def. Yelizaveta Karlova (VCU-W) 3-6, 7-5, 6-0
2. M. Juliana P. Romero (LIBERTYW) def. T. Andrade Sabando (VCU-W) 6-1, 4-6, 6-3
3. Daniella O'Neill (LIBERTYW) def. Anja Draskovic (VCU-W) 2-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7-5)
4. Marina Davtyan (LIBERTYW) def. Emma Valletta (VCU-W) 6-4, 6-4
5. Emma Rizzetto (VCU-W) def. Maria Turchetto (LIBERTYW) 6-2, 6-1
6. Tiziana Rossini (VCU-W) def. Sadie Daavettila (LIBERTYW) 6-1, 6-3
Doubles Competition
1. #54 Yelizaveta Karlova/Emma Valletta (VCU-W) def. #59 Daniella O'Neill/Priscila Janikian (LIBERTYW) 6-1
2. M. Juliana P. Romero/Sadie Daavettila (LIBERTYW) vs. Tiziana Rossini/Emma Rizzetto (VCU-W) 6-6 (1-4), unfinished
3. Anja Draskovic/T. Andrade Sabando (VCU-W) def. Maria Turchetto/Marina Davtyan (LIBERTYW) 7-5
VCU 8-1
Liberty 5-1
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (5,6,4,2,1,3)
Official: Harrison, Harrison T-4:19
How it Happened
Doubles
- In a battle of ranked foes on court one, VCU's No. 59 pair of Yelizaveta Karlova and Emma Valletta trounced Liberty's No. 59 pair of O'Neill and Pricila Janikian (3-1) 6-1 to grab the early advantage.
- The Lady Flames came up just short of a dramatic comeback in the No. 3 doubles match. Marina Davtyan and Maria Turchetto (3-3) fought back from down 4-2 to Anja Draskovic and Tania Andrade Sabando but fell 7-5.
- Liberty's No. 2 pair of Parra Romero and Sadie Daavettila (0-2) nearly completed a comeback of their own from down 5-3 to force a tiebreak with Tiziana Rossini and Emma Rizzetto. The match went unfinished in the tiebreaker with the Rams up 4-1.
Singles
- VCU picked up two quick wins on courts five and six to take a 3-0 lead. In the No. 5 singles match, Rizzetto topped Turchetto (3-3) 6-2, 6-1. On court six, Rossini bested Daavettila (2-1) 6-1, 6-3.
- Liberty started its comeback on court four. Davtyan (3-1) fought to a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Valletta.
- The Lady Flames narrowed the lead to 3-2 in the No. 2 singles match. Parra Romero (3-1), moved to the No. 2 singles position to match up with a familiar foe, taking down Andrade Sabando 6-1, 4-6, 6-3.
- Liberty evened the match with an impressive comeback on court one. Lovato (3-2), facing a 5-3 deficit in the second set, rattled off 10 unanswered games to steal the match from Karlova 3-6, 7-5, 6-0. Lovato grabs her fourth career win in the No. 1 singles position and her 110th career singles win.
- Trailing 4-2 in the third set with no other matches playing, Daniella O'Neill (4-1) took key coaching tips to roar back in the set and force a tiebreaker on court three. Facing Draskovic, O'Neill fought back from a 2-6 first set, took the second set 7-5 and forced a tiebreaker in the deciding match. The redshirt freshman jumped out to a 4-2 in the tiebreaker creating all the separation needed for a 2-7, 7-5, 7-6 (5) victory.
Up Next
Liberty (5-1) prepares for two matches in two starting Sunday. The Lady Flames face Harvard (7-2) in a neutral site match hosted at Furman at 1 p.m. Sunday. Liberty then takes on Furman (1-5) Monday at 3 p.m.
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
1
Yelizaveta Karlova/ Emma Valletta (54/-) [VCU-W]
6
1
#2 Doubles Match
12
Tiziana Rossini/ Emma Rizzetto [VCU-W]
60
6UF
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
1,3
#1 Singles Match
123
Yelizaveta Karlova / 0 [VCU-W]
650
376
#2 Singles Match
123
T. Andrade Sabando / 0 [VCU-W]
163
646
#3 Singles Match
123
Anja Draskovic / 0 [VCU-W]
656
277
#4 Singles Match
12
Emma Valletta / 0 [VCU-W]
44
66
#5 Singles Match
12
Emma Rizzetto / 0 [VCU-W]
66
21
#6 Singles Match
12
Tiziana Rossini / 0 [VCU-W]
66
13
Order of Finish:
5,6,4,2,1,3
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
Coach Connell Talks About The Win Over KSU
Thursday, April 17
Joaquim Almeida Talks About The Upcoming CUSA Tournament
Tuesday, April 15
Daniella O'Neill Talks About The Upcoming CUSA Tournament
Tuesday, April 15
Joaquim Almeida: Finding the Lord and Liberty
Friday, April 11