Wake Forest Athletics
Friday, October 2
Montgomery, Ala.
Wake Forest University
vs
Blue Gray Classic
Demon Deacons Finish Runners-Up at Blue Gray Classic
10/4/2026 6:23:00 PM | Women's Tennis
The Deacs defeated both the combined team of North Alabama and Alabama State and Memphis en route to the tournament final.
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The Wake Forest women's tennis team continued its fall slate as it earned a runner-up finish at the 78th annual Blue Gray Classic on Saturday afternoon at Lagoon Park.
The Demon Deacons opened the tournament with a dominant 6-0 win over the combined team of North Alabama and Alabama State on Friday afternoon, before securing a 4-2 semifinal win over Memphis. The Deacs ultimately fell in the finals to Ole Miss, 4-3.
Wake Forest was stellar in doubles action as it won all six of its doubles matches during the tournament.
The duo of sophomore Claire Hill and Lillian Santos was dominant as they picked up wins over North Alabama's Delanet/Schouten, Memphis' Santos/Nedderhut and Ole Miss' Nita/Crowder. Meanwhile, seniors Sankavi Gownder and Aubrey Nisbet also went perfect in their doubles matches, defeating Alabama State's El Tawil/Campagna, Memphis' Mall/Moeller and Ole Miss' Iglesias/Battesi.
Hill continued her stellar play in singles as she won all three of her matches. The Cary, N.C., native opened the tournament with a 6-2, 6-1 victory over North Alabama's Sammie Schouten on Friday afternoon. She then picked up wins over Alicia Hall of Memphis, 6-4, 6-3, and Ole Miss' Riley Crowder, 6-1, 7-5, on Saturday.
Gownder also tallied a pair of singles wins, defeating North Alabama's Mathilde Delaney and Memphis' Malina Nedderhut. Meanwhile, Santos and Nisbet both tallied wins in the opening round of the tournament.
Results
Round One vs. North Alabama/Alabama State
From Coach Wyshner
"Another great Blue Gray Classic experience for us. The event, the hospitality of host families and the support of the local community makes the Blue Gray the best tennis event of the year! We played really well this weekend. We won all six doubles matches we played, and the singles matches were hard fought. It was hard with the forecasted rain on Sunday to play three singles and three doubles sessions in about 30 hours, but our group met the challenge head-on and never complained. Everyone played well. Claire [Hill] was really the outstanding player of the entire event with a perfect 6-0 record across both doubles and singles. We've had three good partial team events thus far this fall. Now, we're looking forward to taking the entire group to ITA Regionals and building on how we've played so far."
Up Next
The Deacs continue their fall slate as they look to qualify for the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships at the ITA Regional Championships from Oct. 15-20 in Columbia, S.C.
The Demon Deacons opened the tournament with a dominant 6-0 win over the combined team of North Alabama and Alabama State on Friday afternoon, before securing a 4-2 semifinal win over Memphis. The Deacs ultimately fell in the finals to Ole Miss, 4-3.
Wake Forest was stellar in doubles action as it won all six of its doubles matches during the tournament.
The duo of sophomore Claire Hill and Lillian Santos was dominant as they picked up wins over North Alabama's Delanet/Schouten, Memphis' Santos/Nedderhut and Ole Miss' Nita/Crowder. Meanwhile, seniors Sankavi Gownder and Aubrey Nisbet also went perfect in their doubles matches, defeating Alabama State's El Tawil/Campagna, Memphis' Mall/Moeller and Ole Miss' Iglesias/Battesi.
Hill continued her stellar play in singles as she won all three of her matches. The Cary, N.C., native opened the tournament with a 6-2, 6-1 victory over North Alabama's Sammie Schouten on Friday afternoon. She then picked up wins over Alicia Hall of Memphis, 6-4, 6-3, and Ole Miss' Riley Crowder, 6-1, 7-5, on Saturday.
Gownder also tallied a pair of singles wins, defeating North Alabama's Mathilde Delaney and Memphis' Malina Nedderhut. Meanwhile, Santos and Nisbet both tallied wins in the opening round of the tournament.
Results
Round One vs. North Alabama/Alabama State
- Doubles
- Hill/Santos (WFU) def. Delaney/Schouten (UNA) 6-1
- Gownder/Nisbet (WFU) def. El Tawil/Campagna (ASU) 6-3
- Singles
- Claire Hill (WFU) def. Sammie Schouten (UNA) 6-2, 6-1
- Sankavi Gownder (WFU) def. Mathilde Delaney (UNA) 6-4, 7-6 (3)
- Lillian Santos (WFU) def. Kesmat El Tawil (ASU) 7-6 (3), 6-3
- Aubrey Nisbet def. Alexia Campagna (ASU) 6-4, 6-4
- Doubles
- Hill/Santos (WFU) def. Santos/Nedderhut (Memphis) 6-3
- Gownder/Nisbet (WFU) def. Mall/Moeller (Memphis) 6-4
- Singles
- Claire Hill (WFU) def. Alicia Mall (Memphis) 6-4, 6-3
- Sankavi Gownder def. Malina Nedderhut (Memphis) 6-2, 6-4
- Leonie Moeller (Memphis) def. Lillian Santos (WFU) 6-4, 7-5
- Maria Santos (Memphis) def. Aubrey Nisbet (WFU) 6-4, 6-3
- Doubles
- Hill/Santos (WFU) def. Nita/Crowder (Ole Miss) 7-6 (5)
- Gownder/Nisbet (WFU) def. Iglesias/Battesi (Ole Miss) 6-4
- Singles
- Claire Hill (WFU) def. Riley Crowder (Ole Miss) 6-1, 7-5
- Alice Battesi (Ole Miss) def. Sankavi Gownder (WFU) 4-6, 7-5, 6-4
- Sarah Victoria Majesty Nita (Ole Miss) def. Lillian Santos (WFU) 6-2, 7-5
- Léna Thomas Iglesias (Ole Miss) def. Aubrey Nisbet (WFU) 6-0, 6-2
- Tiebreaker
- Nita/Crowder (Ole Miss) def. Hill/Santos (WFU) 10-6
From Coach Wyshner
"Another great Blue Gray Classic experience for us. The event, the hospitality of host families and the support of the local community makes the Blue Gray the best tennis event of the year! We played really well this weekend. We won all six doubles matches we played, and the singles matches were hard fought. It was hard with the forecasted rain on Sunday to play three singles and three doubles sessions in about 30 hours, but our group met the challenge head-on and never complained. Everyone played well. Claire [Hill] was really the outstanding player of the entire event with a perfect 6-0 record across both doubles and singles. We've had three good partial team events thus far this fall. Now, we're looking forward to taking the entire group to ITA Regionals and building on how we've played so far."
Up Next
The Deacs continue their fall slate as they look to qualify for the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships at the ITA Regional Championships from Oct. 15-20 in Columbia, S.C.
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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