CLEMSON, S.C. – The Western Carolina women’s tennis team opened its spring season on Sunday suffering a 7-0 defeat against Clemson at Duckworth Tennis Facility.

Clemson (3-0) opened the match by claiming the doubles point with a 6-1 win at the No. 3 spot before a 6-2 victory in the top pairing to earn the match’s opening point for the 1-0 edge. The Catamount duo of Angela Perez and Isabella Sambola grabbed a pair of sets before the match was called with the Tigers leading 5-2. 

The Tigers pushed the lead to 2-0 with a straight-set win at the individual No. 6 spot as Leigh Van Zyl defeated WCU’s Andrea Redondo before a win at the top spot for the hosts that allowed the lead to move to 3-0.

Clemson claimed the match with a 6-3, 6-3 decision at the No. 2 singles spot with Eleni Louka downing Sambola that gave the Tigers the win in Sunday afternoon’s opener for WCU. 

Following the match being clinched, Clemson added a 6-4, 6-3 decision at the No. 3 singles matchup as Chloe Schwarz battled for the Catamounts. In the No. 5 singles action, Madison Schwarz fell in a tightly contested 7-6 set before Clemson’s Sophia Hatton grabbed a 6-3 win in the second set to extend the lead. 

Western Carolina (0-1) had Perez open her singles match with a 6-3 win before Clemson claimed the latter two sets to finish Sunday’s match. 

The Catamounts return home for the first two times in the 2024 season beginning on Thursday, Jan. 25, at 2 p.m. against Tusculum in a match originally scheduled for Jan. 20 but postponed due to weather. The Catamounts continue their home stretch the next afternoon with a 2 p.m. start on the 26th against Emmanuel. Both matches will take place at the Catamount Athletic Complex. 

For the latest information on Catamount women’s tennis, follow @catamounts or @catamountTennis on Twitter or go to www.catamountsports.com. In-match updates can be found on the Catamount women’s tennis official tennis Twitter page.