Women's Tennis Sweeps Hofstra Thursday in CAA Championships First Round

Thursday, April 20

Elon, N.C.

9 a.m.

Drexel University

No. 9 Hofstra

Photo by: Greg Carroccio

Women's Tennis Sweeps Hofstra Thursday in CAA Championships First Round

4/20/2017 12:20:00 PM | Women's Tennis

ELON, N.C. – The eighth-seeded Drexel women's tennis team swept the No. 9 Hofstra Pride, 4-0, Thursday morning for the victory in the first round of the Colonial Athletic Association Championships hosted by Elon at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center. The win sets up a quarterfinals matchup with the top-seeded William & Mary Tribe.

With the victory, the Dragons improve to 16-8 (2-3 CAA) on year, breaking the single-season program mark for wins. The record was set at 15 in 2014-15. The win is Drexel's first in the CAA Championships since 2012, when it beat Towson, 4-3, in the first round.

The Dragons jumped out to the doubles point and didn't look back in their sweep of the Pride. Lea Winkler and Honami Yazawa started the morning off with a decisive 6-1 win in the third spot to get Drexel on the board. After falling at No. 1, Ghita Benhadi and Kendra Bunch combined for the 7-5 win at No. 2 to put the point away. With control of the match, the Dragons made quick work of Hofstra to close it out in singles. Yazawa breezed past Jasmine King in the top spot, 6-1, 6-0, before Ryshena Providence beat Giulia Leone in commanding fashion at No. 6, 6-4, 6-1. Benhadi then closed out the win with a 6-3, 7-5 victory over Michal Kaplan in the second spot.

Drexel's men begin action at the CAA Championships on Friday. They will take on No. 3 William & Mary in the quarterfinals at 1 p.m.

The Dragons and Tribe square off Friday morning at 9 a.m. at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center for a spot in the semifinals.

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No. 8 Drexel 4, No. 9 Hofstra 0
Singles
Honami Yazawa (DU) DEF Jasmine King (HU), 6-1, 6-0
Ghita Benhadi (DU) DEF Michal Kaplan (HU), 6-3, 7-5
Kendra Bunch (DU) unfinished Sarah Herndon (HU), 6-3, 4-4
Carmen Pestano (HU) unfinished Lea Winkler (DU), 7-6, 0-4
Dish Yellayi (HU) unfinished Clary Rodriguez Cruz (DU), 6-4, 5-6
Ryshena Providence (DU) DEF Giulia Leone (HU), 6-4, 6-1
Order of finish: 1, 6, 2

Doubles
Herndon & King (HU) DEF Providence & Rodriguez Cruz (DU), 6-4
Benhadi & Bunch (DU) DEF Kaplan & Yellayi (HU), 7-5
Winkler & Yazawa (DU) DEF Pestano & Leone (HU), 6-1
Order of finish: 3, 1, 2