By Alvin Halimwidjaya
Gianna Insogna cruised past Jayla Smith 6-1, 6-0 in fifth singles vs La Salle (Courtesy of Fordham Athletics).
The Fordham women’s tennis team traveled to the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Florida last week to participate in the Atlantic 10 Championship. With an 18-3 record, the Rams had secured the third seed in the tournament. They notched two 4-0 wins on Wednesday, April 26 and Friday, April 28 against La Salle and Rhode Island before falling to second-seeded Massachusetts in the semifinals on Saturday, April 29.
In their first matchup against 14-seeded La Salle, the Rams started off with two 6-0 doubles wins as sophomore Alexis Zobeideh and senior Mayu Sato swept Jade Smith and Ally Santerelli, while freshman Maia Balce and junior Carolina Sa shut out Jayla Smith and Maansi Malhotra. Sophomore Carina Ma and junior Estelle Wong were leading 5-2 against Brittany Poje and Ali Snyder when the match was ended due to the two wins.
In singles play, sophomore Gianna Insogna defeated Jayla Smith 6-1, 6-0, Sato notched an easy win against Jade Smith 6-1, 6-1 and Balce clinched the match with her 6-2, 6-1 victory over Ally Santerelli.
On Friday, the Rams hit the ground running once again in their matchup against 11-seeded Rhode Island. The duo of Ma and Wong beat Rachel Smilansky and Emily Zargham 6-2, while Zobeideh and Sato defeated Mihaela Codreanu and Tiara Higuchi 6-3. Balce and Sa were leading 5-4 when the match was halted.
In singles play, senior Destiny Grunin notched an easy win over Jordan Rucks 6-1, 6-0, while Ma defeated Codreanu 6-2, 7-5. Wong clinched the match with a 7-6, 6-1 victory over Emily Zargham.
On Saturday, the Rams’ run came to an end in their second A-10 semifinal in the last three years for the Rams against second-seeded Massachusetts 4-0. During doubles play, Fordham lost both completed doubles matches, as the pair of Ma and Wong fell to Ruth Crawford and Anna Woosley, 6-0, while Zobeideh and Sato dropped their match to Ana Yrazusta and Janja Kovacevic, 6-2. Balce and Sa were leading 5-2 when UMass clinched the doubles point.
In singles play, Wong lost to Ruth Crawford, 6-1, 6-1, while Balce fell to Ana Yrazusta, 6-2, 6-0. UMass clinched the match with an Anna Woosley victory over Sato, 6-3, 6-1. Insogna won her first set against Laura Moreno, 6-4, and was leading 3-2 in the second set when the match was ended.
The Rams end one of their best seasons in recent history with a 20-4 record.
The Fordham Ram 
