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Viktoriya Kanapatskaya went into a super tiebreaker for the second straight match after splitting the first two sets against Abigail Rencheli — the No. 31 singles player in the country, according to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association. The tiebreaker started with a quick point by Rencheli and the match went back and forth until Kanapatskaya tied the score at 7-7. A late rally ended in an overhead shot that went long and tied the match.

The lead continued to fluctuate until Rencheli took a 10-9 lead. On match point, the two traded forehands for what seemed like minutes before Kanapatskaya hit one into the net, giving Rencheli a 11-9 victory. Kanapatskaya covered her face with her hands as the ball dropped from the net to the floor.

“With a super tiebreaker, it can go either way and it was one point here and one point there,” head coach Younes Limam said. “It’s just unfortunate that she came up a bit short.”

Kanapatskaya and her long-time doubles partner, sophomore Ines Fonte, left their doubles match with a score of 3-2 because the point had been quickly decided by the other 6-0, 6-1 victories in favor of No. 2 NC State. After a back-and-forth match was stopped in its tracks, the stage was set for Kanapatskaya and Rencheli in the No. 1 singles spot. Kanapatskaya lost her singles match for the fourth straight time. Syracuse has totaled just two points in its past four matches, both of which came from singles victories by Polina Kozyreva this weekend.

Kanapatskaya jumped out to an early lead in the first set before Rencheli hit a serve that was ruled out. NC State assistant coach David Secker sent Rencheli to the bench to calm her down before jumping into the argument himself shortly after, claiming the ball was in.

On the very next rally, a ball came into their court from another match, so the line judge called a let, despite Kanapatskaya winning the point just moments after the ball interfered. She argued with the judge for several minutes, and eventually, Kanapatskaya turned her back and sent a bullet into the green tarp behind the court, a sign of frustration.

“You know, it happens sometimes,” Limam said. “They play with so much pace, the ball could be in or out, so there is a little bit of going back and forth with the calls sometimes.”

In the first set, Kanapatskaya was kept on the run by Rencheli, but she was always able to extend rallies until Rencheli made a mistake. That ability led Kanapatskaya to a decisive 6-2 victory in the first set.

Secker talked strategy with Rencheli between sets, accentuating her backhand form, which she hit into the net repeatedly during the first set. That was rectified in the second.

Rencheli came out exclaiming, “Let’s go” or “Come on” after almost every point she won. She used that energy to hit harder shots as Kanapatskaya’s fatigue kicked in. Rencheli eventually won the set 6-2, after which Kanapatskaya slammed her racket into the back tarp and then disappeared behind it for a few moments.

And in the super tiebreaker, a 10-point match replacing a third set to decide the match, Kanapatskaya ultimately lost. Still, Limam said he was proud of how Kanapatskaya “hung in there,” keeping her aggressive style of play even when she trailed.

“She played decisive tennis and that’s when she plays her best,” Limam said.

Published on March 27, 2022 at 4:17 pm

Contact Wyatt: wbmiller@syr.edu