Tampa Opens 2025 Spring Season Against Navy

Tampa, Fla- The University of Tampa's Women's Tennis team was back in action this afternoon to begin the spring season. The No. 20 ranked Spartans played host to the United States Naval Academy of the Division 1 Patriot League Conference. In what was an exciting day of matches, Tampa showed flashes of good they can be. 

Final: Navy Midshipmen 5 , No. 20 University of Tampa Spartans 2

Location: Naimoli and Young Tennis Complex | Tampa, Fla.

Records: No. 20 University of Tampa Spartans (0-1), Navy Midshipmen (4-6)

History: This was the second time these two programs have faced off, Navy lead the all-time series 2-0. 

How it Happened: 

The Spartans opened the 2025 season with doubles against the Midshipmen. The returning pair of Cierniak/Sanchez took the court for the first time spring but came up short against a strong Navy side. While losing match number one, Tampa still had a chance at the doubles point, Axelsson/Chebli had built a 5-2 lead against their competition with a chance to clinch match point. Navy fought back but the pair was able to out duel the Midshipmen and win their match 6-4, tying doubles at 1-1. Unfortunately in the third doubles match, Sundin/Gutkowski were unable to handle the strong serving from Navy and fell 6-2. Despite the loss, the new pair for the Spartans looked strong in their spring debuts and are poised to grow as the season continues. This gave the Naval Academy a 1-0 lead heading into singles play. 

As the match transitioned to singles, both teams came to play. Not a single match went to three sets and only two sets finished 6-4. To start singles off, Regina Davalos made her Spartan debut but fell in two sets, giving Navy a 2-0 lead. Navy picked up another point when they beat Nicole Cierniak 6-1, 6-3, but her doubles partner Victoria Sanchez packed her up in a big way. Sanchez defeated her Navy opponent 6-3,6-3 to pick up the first Spartan point of the day. While Sanchez was winning her match, newcomers Sophie Wagner and Ida Axelsson fell to their Midshippen counterparts. Axelsson played two hard fought but fell in nail-biting 6-4,6-3 straight sets. Nicole Casas picked up the second Tampa point of the match when she defeated her opponent in a sweep of 6-4,6-1. In the end, tampa fell to the Naval Academy 5-2 but competed hard the entire match.    

Doubles Results: Navy 2-1 - Navy 1 Point 

1. Fermo/Tannenbaum (Navy) def. Cierniak/Sanchez (Tampa) 6-2

2. Axelsson/Chebli (Tampa) def. Eklund/Jordaan (Navy) 6-4

3. Li/Shanker (Navy) def. Sundlin/Gutkowski (Tampa) 6-2

Singles Results: Navy 4 Points, Tampa 2 Points

1. Molly Bellia (Navy) def. Regina Davalos (Tampa) 6-2, 6-2

2. Emily Tannenbaum (Navy) def. Nicole Cierniak (Tampa) 6-1, 6-3

3. Emma Gu (Navy) def. Sophie Wagner (Tampa) 6-2, 6-2

4. Nicole Casas (Tampa) def. Kate Lee (Navy) 6-4, 6-1

5. Victoria Sanchez (Tampa) def. Sylvia Eklund (Navy) 6-3, 6-3

6. Parvathi Shanker (Navy) def. Ida Axelsson (Tampa) 6-4, 6-3

Outside the Box: 

• No. 20 Spartans earned 3 total match victories against a Division 1 opponent

• Every singles match was a sweep in this electric day of tennis 

UP NEXT: Tampa will get back on the court in less than 48 hours when they host No. 1 Barry University. This match will take place on Sunday, February 16th at 10:00am.