Led by two singles victories from freshman Annette Goulak, the Georgia Bulldogs women’s tennis team opened 2018 with five singles wins in the first of a two-day round-robin event with Georgia State on Saturday at the Lindsey Hopkins Indoor Courts.

“This is about as early as we’ve ever competed, being the first weekend of school,” Georgia head coach Jeff Wallace said. “I felt like all the players came in and played hard and played smart and played well. I thought Annette’s serve has really has gotten a lot better. She was playing a really good player, and it was close, so it’s good to see our players, when the matches are on the line, to find ways to rise their game up a little bit and win.”

Goulak recorded the first Georgia singles win with a straight-set performance over Georgia State junior Lara Vovk, 6-1, 6-1. She capitalized on her first victory with a second against the Panthers’ freshman Elizabet Danailova. Trailing two games in the first set, Goulak fought back, evening the match at four before sealing the first set 6-4. The battle continued in the second frame, with Goulak matching each of Danailova’s game victories with one of her own, until the freshman from Oak Park, Calif. took the final 6-4 set.

“I had a lot of close points and close games,” Goulak said. “In the beginning, I would get nervous, because everything relies on that one point. But my teammates were cheering me on and my coaches were there, and with more practice and more matches like these, I feel like I can have the confidence to win those close games and those close points.”

Senior Mariana Gould notched a commanding 6-1, 6-3 victory over sophomore Damira Muminovic. Joining the veteran was freshman Vivian Wolff with a straight-set 6-3, 6-4 win over Vovk. After winning the first frame 6-3, Wolff fought back from a 1-3 deficit in the second, knotting the match at four and topping Volk in the final two games to end the contest in two sets.

Senior Kennedy Shaffer split her two matches on the day. After winning the first set against Danailova 6-2, Shaffer dropped the second, forcing the match into a 10-point tiebreaker, which Danailova took 10-6. Shaffer returned in her next match of the day with a 6-1, 6-1 win over Muminovic.

The Bulldogs continue its round-robin with Georgia State on Sunday at 10 a.m. in the Lindsey Hopkins Indoor Courts.

Results:
 
Annette Goulak def. Lara Vovk 6-1, 6-1

Mariana Gould def. Damira Muminovic 6-1, 6-3

Elizabet Danailova def. Kennedy Shaffer 2-6, 6-4, 10-6

Vivian Wolff def. Lara Volk 6-3, 6-4

Kennedy Shaffer def. Damira Muminovic 6-1, 6-1

Annette Goulak def. Elizabet Danailova 6-4, 6-4