Medal matchups set after thrilling day of semifinal tennis
On Day 2 of the OUA tennis championships at the Mayfair Parkway Club in Markham, Ont., semifinal action took over with excitement building throughout the day. Both No. 1 seeds on the men's and women's side advanced with strong wins for the Montreal Carabins and York Lions, respectively. Then, in the tightest action in the two days thus far, the Mustangs women edged out the Varsity Blues 4-3, before U of T returned the favour with an identical 4-3 win on the men's side over Western.
On the women's side, the OUA championship banner will be on the line in a match that will feature the defending champion Western Mustangs and the No. 1 seed York Lions, while a new king will be crowned on the men's side with Montreal facing off with U of T. Action tomorrow will being with bronze medal games between the Montreal and Toronto women and York and Western men.
W – (1) York 6 vs. (4) Montreal 1
The No. 1 York Lions defeated a shorthanded Montreal Carabins squad 6-1 in the OUA championship semifinals on Saturday morning. Just like their quarterfinal victory, the Carabins conceded a singles and doubles match to their opponent, but this time the odds were too much to overcome against a rested and prepared Lions team. The most exciting match saw York No. 2 Julia Khalilova and Montreal No. 4 Catherine Drolet battle in a fierce first set tiebreak before Khalilova secured the singles victory.
The Lions now advance to the gold-medal match tomorrow afternoon at 11:30 a.m., while the Carabins will compete for bronze at 10:30 a.m.
M – (1) Montreal 7 vs. (5) York 0
The Montreal Carabins displayed why they earned the No. 1 seed, knocking off the York Lions in a clean sweep of their OUA semifinal matchup. Montreal's depth of talent was key in victory this afternoon, with the Carabins doubles team of No. 4 Virgil Sammartin and No. 6 Hubert Cote-Maltais shutting out their Lions counterparts, before the pair also picked up convincing singles wins. Playing well for the Lions was No. 5 Sahil Sareen, who pushed Montreal to the brink alongside teammate Tre Eli in the doubles round. Sareen also battled admirably in a tough matchup with Montreal powerhouse Hugo Maurice.
With the win, Montreal now advances to the OUA championship finals scheduled for 4 p.m. tomorrow afternoon at the Mayfair Parkway Club. The Lions will look to bounce back as they go for bronze at 3 p.m.
W – (2) Western 4 vs. (3) Toronto 3
In the most tightly contested match of the OUA championships, the Western Mustangs clinched a berth in the gold-medal match by defeating the host Varsity Blues 4-3. Toronto secured the doubles round, picking up two wins; one of which was a thrilling tiebreak victory for the pair of Carmen Lai and Alara Demirag. The Mustangs, however, rebounded in the singles round with No. 5 Agathe Keromnes claiming the decisive fourth singles victory for Western in front of a captivated crowd.
The Mustangs will now have the opportunity to defend their championship from a season ago, as they challenge the No. 1 York Lions tomorrow morning in the gold-medal match. First serve is scheduled for 11:30 a.m.
M – (2) Toronto 4 vs. (3) Western 3
A new OUA champion will be crowned following the Varsity Blues 4-3 victory over the defending champion Western Mustangs on Saturday night (Oct. 7). U of T won two of the three doubles contests to claim the first point before action was taken over by grueling singles matches. The semifinal contest was capped off by a deciding three set singles victory by U of T No. 2 Felix Fan, who came back from down a set to win and send the Blues to the gold-medal round. Teammate Andrew Bourne-Kaponeridis also came back to win a three set singles match, while Blues No. 1 Sasha Obucina utilized a tiebreak first set to win his matchup. Vahagn Tonakanian won both his doubles and singles showdowns for the Mustangs.
The host Varsity Blues will now move on to the gold-medal round where they will face the No. 1 seeded Montreal Carabins. Gold medal action is scheduled for 4 p.m. at the Mayfair Parkway Club in Markham, Ont. Western will challenge the Lions for bronze at 3:00 p.m.
Championship Schedule
Friday, October 6
BYE: Women's - York
BYE: Men's - Montreal
Match 1 – Women's - Toronto 7 Brock 0
Match 2 – Men's - Toronto 7 Brock 0
Match 3 – Men's - Waterloo 3 York 4
Match 4 – Women's - Western 7 McMaster 0
Match 5 – Men's - Western 7 McMaster 0
Match 6 – Women's - Montreal 6 Waterloo 1
Saturday, October 7
Match 8 – Women's Semifinal – York 6 vs. Montreal 1
Match 9 – Men's Semifinal – Montreal 7 vs. York 0
Match 10 – Women's Semifinal – Western 4 vs. Toronto 3
Match 11 – Men's Semifinal – Toronto 4 vs. Western 3
Sunday, October 8
Match 12 – Women's Bronze Medal Match – #3 Toronto vs. #4 Montreal – 10:30am
Match 13 – Women's Gold Medal Match – #1 York vs. #2 Western – 11:30am
Match 14 – Men's Bronze Medal Match – #3 Western vs. #5 York – 3:00pm
Match 15 – Men's Gold Medal Match – #1 Montreal vs. # 2 Toronto – 4:00pm
