Wake Forest University
2023 Carolina Kickoff
Demon Deacons to Open Spring with Hidden Duals in South Carolina
1/12/2023 12:59:00 PM | Women's Tennis
Spring competition has arrived for women’s tennis!
COLUMBIA, S.C. – Primed for a full-go 2023 slate, Wake Forest women's tennis begins its spring season this weekend out of state, traveling to Columbia, South Carolina to partake in the University of South Carolina's hosted Carolina Kickoff Invitational.
Play begins on Friday (Jan. 13), running through Sunday afternoon (Jan. 15).
The Demon Deacons are one of four teams welcomed into the event, joining a field that includes athletes representing Georgia Tech, Wisconsin, and the host Gamecocks.
Tournament play will feature a round-robin, hidden duals style of action. Following the conclusion of the Carolina Kickoff, Wake Forest heads into dual competition for the ensuing weeks.
This past fall, the Deacs participated in five events, securing title wins at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Carolina Regionals and sending a nationally-ranked doubles pair of Anna Brylin/Brooke Killingsworth to ITA Fall Nationals for the second straight year.
Last spring, Wake Forest finished with a 17-11 overall record, going 7-6 against Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) foes and making its sixth consecutive NCAA tournament appearance. Additionally, five roster members earned berths to the 2022 NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships section.
Meet the Crew
Anna Brylin brings a wealth of experience to the roster as a fifth-year player who has been a standout contributor over the years. Acting as a team captain in 2022, the New Jersey native tied for the team lead in singles victories (16) while making 27 appearances en route to landing All-ACC Third Team honors. Twelve of Brylin's season wins occurred in straight sets.
In doubles, Brylin teamed up with Brooke Killingsworth to form an exceptional duo, ranking as one of the top pairs across the country. The two enter the 2023 season ranked as the No. 12 tandem in ITA doubles. Last spring, Brylin/Killingsworth upped their ranking to as high as No. 2, tallying a 15-6 overall record and taking down five ranked foes. The Deacon duo ultimately made their way into the 2022 NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships and received ITA All-American recognition – the fifth all-time Wake Forest doubles team to notch such honors.
Killingsworth also stood out individually during her sophomore year, finishing with 13 singles victories, which stood second-most on the team. She will look to take another major leap as an upperclassman.
Casie Wooten is the lone Deac to bring a ranking with her into this year's spring campaign – currently standing at No. 27 in ITA singles. She developed into a consistent and versatile threat a year ago, holding the best singles 'win-loss' ratio (16-5) on the team in 2022. Competing in 24 matches, she was one of two Wake Forest players to finish last season ranked in ITA singles, leading her squad in solo wins for much of the regular season and winning seven of her final nine completed matches down the stretch.
Maddie Lynch is the only true senior, who went undefeated in three doubles showings during the 2022 season. She looks to capitalize off of a noteworthy fall campaign that saw her pace Wake Forest in singles victories. Mia Ahmad rounds out the bunch of returners, having partnered with several different teammates in doubles last year. She ultimately competed in 15 matches, winning eight in duo competition.
A quartet of newcomers comprise Wake Forest's freshmen class:
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Krystal Blanch – Boca Raton, Florida
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Nevena Carton – Locust, New Jersey
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Jingyi "Stella" Li – Bradenton, Florida
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Whitley Pate – Daniel Island, South Carolina
Wake Forest tied for No. 15 within the Tennis Recruiting Network's (TRN) national list of recruiting classes for the Class of 2022. The Deacs were one of five Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) institutions to land in the Top 15.
2022 Wake Forest Women's Tennis Fall Highlights
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Wake Forest saw its players combine for 34 singles wins and 19 doubles victories in fall play.
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Maddie Lynch led the way with an 8-2 singles record while No. 3 Anna Brylin/Brooke Killingsworth went 7-3 in doubles.
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In her first season showing on Sept. 16, during the 35th annual Debbie Southern Fall Classic, No. 86 Casie Wooten downed No. 5 Chloe Beck (Duke University) in three sets.
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It was the highest ranked win of Wooten's collegiate career.
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Anna Brylin played exceptionally well in her first two rounds of the Debbie Southern Fall Classic, securing ranked wins over No. 70 Iuliia Bryzgalova (Duke University) and No. 76 Anessa Lee (Vanderbilt) before making a Singles F3 championship appearance.
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Freshmen Nevena Carton and Jingyi Li notched a win apiece in their first collegiate matches, happening at the Debbie Southern Fall Classic.
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Wake Forest had a total of six players compete in the 2022 ITA All-American Championships, as Anna Brylin, Nevena Carton, and Whitley Pate each earned singles wins during pre-qualifying play.
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The Deacs enjoyed a successful weekend while hosting the 2022 ITA Carolina Regionals (Oct. 13-17), picking up some hardware through the few days of competition:
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Maddie Lynch cruised her way to a title win in the B2 Singles flight, winning four total matches and securing the championship in a straight-sets victory over Zoe Huffman (UNC Wilmington).
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Anna Brylin and Brooke Killingsworth were crowned champions of the A2 Doubles division after taking down Big Four foes Cameron Morra/Chloe Beck of Duke. The win ultimately earned the two a berth to the ITA Fall Nationals.
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The Carolina Regionals championships were all firsts for Brylin, Killingsworth, and Lynch.
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In all, Wake Forest totaled 15 solo and 10 duo victories through four days.
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Maddie Lynch and Jingyi Li represented the Black and Old Gold in Elon University's hosted 2022 Jimmy Powell Invitational. Playing as a doubles team, Lynch and Li tied with Sibel Tanik and Lizette Reding of Elon for the most points within the competition, tallying eight a piece.
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Lynch also won two of her three matches in singles.
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Scouting the Opposition
The Gamecocks made a 27th consecutive NCAA tournament appearance at the conclusion of the 2022 spring season, falling to North Carolina in the Round of 32, and have brought back two NCAA singles championship qualifiers:
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No. 6 – Sarah Hamner (ITA Singles)
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No. 20 – Ayana Akli (ITA Singles)
Hamner, the 2022 SEC Freshman of the Year, especially stood out for South Carolina this past fall, piecing together a 12-5 singles record that featured seven ranked wins. The sophomore became the program's second all-time ITA Carolina Regional champion in October, the first Gamecock to achieve such a feat since 1988.
Georgia Tech benefited from a strong fall slate to rank No. 25 in the ITA preseason rankings, released earlier this month. The Yellow Jackets compiled 41 singles and 21 doubles wins throughout the fall and hold three ranked individuals on its roster:
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No. 10 – Carol Lee
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No. 104 – Alejandra Cruz
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No. 109 – Mahak Jain
Lee and Kate Sharabura are also tied for No. 53 in ITA doubles. Georgia Tech went 15-11 overall last season, advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament in its 22nd straight postseason berth.
Wisconsin is coming off a solid 2022 campaign that saw the team finish with an overall record of 17-9 while going 8-3 in the Big Ten Conference. No. 59 – Maria Sholokhova (ITA Singles) and No. 82 – Ava Markham (ITA Singles) are two notable names who will play a role in leading the Badgers. During the fall, five Wisconsin players participated in the ITA All-American Championships, held in Cary, North Carolina.
Up Next
Wake Forest holds its home opener in a Sunday doubleheader next weekend (Jan. 22), hosting Charlotte at 9:30 a.m. followed by a 4:30 p.m. afternoon matchup against the Richmond Spiders.
Players Mentioned
