KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- A batch of players from the North Park Women's Tennis team competed at the 2024 Intercollegiate Tennis Association Central Regional Championships this past Friday through Sunday. Alexandra Pugachova made it all the way to the Consolation final by winning four singles matches in three days.
Pugachova dropped the first match she participated in with a 6-2, 6-0 loss to host player Juliana Pullen of Kalamazoo College. However, after the initial loss, Pugachova would go on a singles tear in the consolation bracket.
In the round of 32, Pugachova secured a 6-0, 6-2 win over Transylvania's Maddy Williams to open consolation play after a couple byes.
The round of 16 put Pugachova against DePauw University's Ellen Gardner. She won that afternoon Saturday match in similar fashion with a 6-3, 6-1 advantage.
Moving on to a busy Sunday, Pugachova made short work of Capitol University's Anna Fletcher with a 6-1, 6-0 victory in a quarterfinal match, advancing on to a competitive semifinal with Wittenberg University's Caroline Sproule. Pugachova would come from behind in this one, dropping the first set 6-2 before earning a 6-2 win of her own in set two and a 12-10 tiebreaking victory.
The consolation finals against John Carroll University's Evelyn Deren would be formatted as an eight-game pro set due to earlier delays at the Regional. Pugachova gave it her all but Deren would walk away with the win, 8-4.
Emilia Sand would also make it to a Sunday quarterfinals appearance. She earned a round of 32 win over Anderson University's Ella Frantz with a 6-2, 6-2 win.
Hanna Zethreaus navigated a tough draw by earning a R128 win, 6-3, 6-4 before a 6-1, 6-3 R64 loss to a very strong U-Chicago player in Erica Ekstrand, who will compete in the main bracket finals tomorrow.
Doubles play for North Park was featured on Friday, as Katja Carlberg and Alexandra Ristfeldt represented Viking Tennis as the only duo. They would earn an 8-2 win over Lake Forest's Bugnacki and Feist before U-Chicago played spoiler by handing the duo an 8-3 loss. Clara Zou and Sarena Biria, the U-Chicago doubles team, made it all the way to the semifinals match before losing to their teammates, Sylwia Mikos and Oliwia Mikos.
All in all, North Park Tennis competed well on the main stage and keeps all its momentum heading into its final four matches of the fall season.
What's Next?
North Park (6-0, 5-0 CCIW) faces Augustana College next Saturday, October 5, back on their home courts in River Park. First serves are set for 1:00 PM CT.
