Tennis: Women's
Penn State's Januskova shines at Cissie Leary Invitational
Petra Januskova capped a busy weekend for Penn State women’s tennis by capturing the overall singles title at the Cissie Leary Invitational.
It was a busy Sunday for Januskova as earlier in the day she teamed up with Nina Sertic to place second in doubles play.
In the singles final, Januskova was able to overcome a first set loss against Columbia’s Nicole Bartnik to seal the title, 2-6, 6-2, 10-8.
“Petra is a solid competitor," head coach Dawna Denny said. "She expects to win every time she is on the court and she believes in her abilities."
After receiving a first-round bye, Januskova dispatched Columbia's Ioana Alesciu in straight sets, 6-0, 6-0 in the round of 32. She found a familiar opponent in the round of 16 in teammate and doubles partner Nina Sertic, who Januskova bested to advance to the quarterfinals.
Januskova advanced past Columbia’s Bianca Sanon in the quarterfinals and fourth-ranked Agustina Eskenazi of Pennsylvania in the semifinals in her march to the finals where she outlasted Columbia’s Bartnik in a tiebreaker.
Before her win in the singles final, the junior was busy trying to secure the doubles title with teammate Nina Sertic.
Sertic, a Kansas State transfer, had a strong showing in her Nittany Lion debut playing alongside Januskova as the pair’s play impressed their coach.
“They push each other and they are a good option for our doubles pairings," Denny said.
The pair was ranked as the top seed and received a first-round bye in the opening round of 32 and breezed by Christine Ordway and Gabby Sullivan of Cornell, 8-4 in the round of 16. After wins in the quarterfinals and semifinals, the pair ran out of steam against third-seeded Agustina Eskenazi and Jaime Yapp-Shing of host Penn, losing 4-8 in the final.
Despite the result in the final, coach Denny said she liked what she saw from her top doubles pair.
“Communication is key in doubles and their personalities work well together,” coach Denny said.
Januskova will look to continue her stellar play on the court as she heads to the All-America Championships in Pacific Palisades, Calif., the championships run from Oct. 1 through Oct. 9.
Her coach called the trip to the championships a fantastic opportunity for the talented junior.