Deacs Extend Win Streak With Sunday Sweep

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Back on its home courts after picking up a first Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) season win on Friday (March 3), Wake Forest women's tennis continued its groove into Sunday (March 5), hosting a doubleheader. The Demon Deacons (11-5, 2-1) firstly knocked off No. 19 Georgia Tech (7-4, 2-2), for its highest ranked win of the spring on a 4-2 finish. An hour later, Wake Forest defeated Middle Tennessee (8-4) in another 4-2 decision.

The Deacs have now won six matches in a row this year. Additionally, Sunday featured the first victory over a top-25 opponent for the team since March 6, 2021, when Wake Forest ironically swept Georgia Tech at home, which was ranked No. 13 at the time.

Senior Maddie Lynch had her clutch gene on full display throughout the day, clinching both matches through singles for her Deacons. The Chagrin Falls, Ohio native has won four solo matches this spring. Three of those wins has seen her provide the clinching point.

During the Georgia Tech victory, Mia Ahmad/Casie Wooten recorded their eight consecutive doubles win.

Brooke Killingsworth went undefeated throughout the weekend's entirety, piecing together three wins in singles and two in doubles.

Wake Forest 4, No. 19 Georgia Tech 2

Gritty play was the story of part one of Sunday's doubleheader, as Wake Forest stepped into a big opportunity against the No. 19 Yellow Jackets. Nevena Carton and Whitley Pate set the tone in doubles, as action went back and forth on both remaining courts before No. 20 Anna Brylin/Brooke Killingsworth sealed the deal in a tiebreaker.

In singles, Georgia Tech tied things up early but Pate notched a straight-sets win to give Wake Forest a slight edge. Several third-set battles then took place, capped off by wins by Killingsworth and Maddie Lynch.

Wake Forest leads 24-20 in the all-time series versus Georgia Tech.

How it Happened

Similarly to their Friday win, Nevena Carton/Whitley Pate scooped their first two games in doubles.
Over in first doubles, No. 20 Anna Brylin/Brooke Killingsworth traded the first four games to tie the board at 2-2.
- Killingsworth delivered an ace to knot the score.
Mia Ahmad/Casie Wooten won two games in consecutive fashion before holding a 3-1 advantage.
After splitting two more games, Brylin/Killingsworth grabbed an additional one to jump in front on court one, 4-3.
Things soon became tied up in both second and third doubles, 3-3 apiece.
Brylin/Killingsworth worked their way back to enter a tiebreaker.
Winning three of the next four games, Carton/Pate went on to win their second doubles match of the weekend.
Meanwhile, Brylin/Killingsworth found themselves in an absolute thriller of back-and-forth rallies within the tiebreaker. The duo hung on for a 7-6 (7) finish, clinching the opening point in the Deacs' favor.
Even with the clinch, Ahmad/Wooten were still able to finish out their ongoing match, winning a tiebreaker of their own (7-6 (4)).
Singles began tightly on each court before Maddie Lynch was the first Deacon to jump in front during the opening set (2-0).
Holding down a ranked matchup, Wooten went up 4-2 in her first frame.
- Killingsworth and Lynch did the same in third and sixth singles, respectively.
  - The former succeeded in two final games to become Wake Forest's first individual to win a set.
Pate put herself in a good position on court five, winning final games en route to a 6-4 victory in her first frame.
- The freshman kept momentum going by opening the second period strongly (3-0).
Wooten endured a back-and-forth, first-set tiebreaker on court one.
Georgia Tech landed a victory in fourth singles.
- As a result, the match score evened up at 1-1.
Brylin continued to work hard, forcing a third set in the process.
- Killingsworth also entered a third frame merely moments afterward.
Lynch bounced back after dropping her opening set, controlling the second in a comfortbale manner (4-6, 6-2).
Pate put her Deacs back in front on the board with a straight-sets win.
It wasn't long before the Yellow Jackets had an answer to tie the margin once again, 2-2, doing so in first singles.
Killingsworth impressed through her final period, dropping only one game on her way to a third-singles win.
- The junior put her Deacs in front for the third time of the afternoon, 3-2.
Brylin and Lynch were the final two Deacons left on active courts, each handling a third set.
Similarly to Killingsworth, Lynch was a force in her final frame, downing her opponent in all but one of the six games and giving Wake Forest the clinch.
- It was the senior's third performance of the spring in which she has clinched a match through singles.
Wake Forest defeated No. 19 Georgia Tech, 4-2.

Doubles Results:

No. 20 Anna Brylin/Brooke Killingsworth (WF) def. Carol Lee/Kate Sharabura (GT) 7-6 (7)
Mia Ahmad/Casie Wooten (WF) def. Kylie Bilchev/Alejandra Cruz (GT) 7-6 (4)
Nevena Carton/Whitley Pate (WF) def. Ruth Marsh/Monika Dedaj (GT) 6-4

Order of Finish: 3, 1, 2

Singles Results:

No. 14 Carol Lee (GT) def. No. 39 Casie Wooten (WF) 6-7 (7-9), 2-6
No. 49 Anna Brylin (WF) vs. No. 40 Kylie Bilchev (GT) 3-6, 6-3, 5-6, unfinished
Brooke Killingsworth (WF) def. Alejandra Cruz (GT) 6-2, 3-6, 6-1
No. 108 Mahak Jain (GT) def. Nevena Carton (WF) 1-6, 3-6
Whitley Pate (WF) def. Rosie Garcia Gross (GT) 6-4, 6-4
Maddie Lynch (WF) def. Ruth Marsh (GT) 4-6, 6-2, 6-1

Order of Finish: 4, 5, 1, 3, 6

Wake Forest 4, MTSU 2

Back and active just over an hour after the lengthy Georgia Tech matchup, Wake Forest fought through some fatigue to again finish victoriously. The Deacs were dominant in doubles, highlighted by a 6-1 showing from the freshmen duo of Nevena Carton/Whitley Pate. It was their third win in a row.

Mia Ahmad and Jingyi Li both moved into the singles lineup, with the former picking up her third solo victory of 2022-23. Brooke Killingsworth showed the upper hand in her own match, helping stretch the Deacon lead.

After the Blue Raiders worked to narrow things, Maddie Lynch again seized control to make a handful of key actions, giving Wake Forest the clinch for an undefeated day of play.

How it Happened

Nevena Carton/Whitley Pate took a 2-0 lead in doubles for the third straight match.
No. 20 Anna Brylin/Brooke Killingsworth stepped into an early tie, 2-2.
- The same such margin happened one court over for Mia Ahmad/Jingyi Li.
Carton/Pate stayed confident, winning two or their next three games.
Capitalizing on two games in a row quickly, Ahmad/Li took over, 4-2.
Carton/Pate breezed through their final games, ending on a 6-1 clip for their third straight win as a duo.
Brylin/Killingsworth did not waste much time afterward, closing the door in doubles with a 6-3 victory on court one.
Ahmad/Li were very close to grabbing a win of their own, but went unfinished on match point.
Underway in singles, Maddie Lynch took each of her first three games.
- Making a third season appearance in solo competition, Ahmad held a slight 3-2 advantage in sixth singles.
Ahmad captured a first-set win before anyone else (6-3).
- Killingsworth was next, holding off her opponent in the opening frame with a 6-3 mark of her own.
  - The two handled business on their respective courts to collect a singles win apiece, upping Wake Forest's lead to 3-0.
Middle Tennessee earned its way on the board with a third-singles victory.
The Blue Raiders cut deeper into the deficit with another win, happening on court five.
- Wake Forest led 3-2 at the time.
It would again by the clutch play of Lynch to act as the match's deciding factor. The senior made several plays to keep a steady advantage, finishing in straight-sets fashion.
Wake Forest defeated Middle Tennessee, 4-2.

Doubles Results:

No. 20 Anna Brylin/Brooke Killingsworth (WF) def. Eloise Swarbrick/Sana Garakani (MTSU) 6-3
Mia Ahmad/Jingyi Li (WF) vs. Noelle Mauro/Lilly-Sophie Schmidt (MTSU) 5-2, unfinished.
Nevena Carton/Whitley Pate (WF) def. Love-Star Alexis/Muskan Gupta (MTSU) 6-1

Order of Finish: 3, 1

Singles Results:

No. 49 Anna Brylin (WF) vs. Love-Star Alexis (MTSU) 4-6, 5-6, unfinished
Brooke Killingsworth (WF) def. Sana Garakani (MTSU) 6-3, 6-2
Muskan Gupta (MTSU) def. Whitley Pate (WF) 6-4, 6-0
Maddie Lynch (WF) def. Lilly-Sophie Schmidt (MTSU) 6-4, 6-3
Noelle Mauro (MTSU) def. Jingyi Li (WF) 6-1, 6-3
Mia Ahmad (WF) def. Cara Szilasi (MTSU) 6-3, 6-3

Order of Finish: 6, 2, 3, 5, 4

From the Head Honcho

"That was a great day today," said head coach Jeff Wyshner. "(The win over Georgia Tech) was a big, top-20 conference win in which the players showed a lot of fight. There were moments in both doubles and singles where momentum was starting to go the other way, and we responded nicely to turn it around. Hats off to Maddie Lynch for clinching both wins for us today… one being a comeback after the dropping the first set, and one with her playing fourth singles because of a couple of teammates that needed the nightcap off. Excited to go to Florida with some momentum from this weekend! Go Deacs!"

Up Next

Wake Forest will have its first weekend of conference road matches next, heading to The Sunshine State to visit Florida State (March 10) and Miami (March 12).

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Team Stats

Players Mentioned

Mia Ahmad

Anna Brylin

Nevena Carton

Brooke Killingsworth

Jingyi Li

Maddie Lynch

Whitley Pate

Casie Wooten