WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – Each time it needed to William & Mary found battled back on Sunday afternoon at the McCormack-Nagelsen Tennis on the way to a 4-3 win over Colonial Athletic Association rival Delaware. Sophomore Hedda Gurholt clinched the Tribe victory for the third-straight match, rallying at the top spot as the Green and Gold won each of the top four singles positions to top the Blue Hens.
 
Along with Gurholt, classmate Emma Fernald won in three sets at the No. 4 post as part of the Tribe's closing push. Senior Elisa Van Meeteren and graduate student Sofiya Kuzina notched wins at No. 2 and No. 3 to lead the Tribe (9-4, 3-0 CAA) to its third CAA win of the year.
 
How It happened
- The Blue Hens (12-3, 2-1 CAA) took the doubles point thanks to wins at the No. 1 and No. 3 positions.
- After Delaware took a 2-0 lead with a singles victory at No. 5, Van Meeteren and Kuzina drew the Tribe even with triumphs on lines two and three. Van Meeteren got the Tribe on the board with her 14th singles win of the year, topping Alina Vasilenko, 7-6 (5), 6-3, at No. 2. She is 5-3 at the position this season.  
- Kuzina drew the Green and Gold even at two with a straight-sets win at No. 3. She downed Eliza Askarova, 6-3, 7-5, improving to 12-10 overall and 5-3 at No. 3.
- The balance of the match came down to three-set tilts at No. 1, No. 4 and No. 6. The Blue Hens briefly took a 3-2 lead behind a win on line six.
- Fernald quickly tied things for the Tribe, downing Toni Nelson in the decisive third set, 6-2, at No. 4. The Tribe sophomore ran her mark to 13-8 on the year and 6-5 at the fourth spot.
- It once again came down to Gurholt at No. 1. After splitting the first two sets by matching 6-4 scores with Adel-Byanu Abidullina, the Tribe sophomore trailed 3-1 in the final set. She rallied to force a tiebreaker, before pulling out the win, 7-6 (4). It marked the third-straight match in which Gurholt clinched the Tribe victory. She improved to 14-7 on the season and an impressive 9-3 at the top spot.
 
Up Next
The Tribe returns to action on Saturday, March 25, when it hosts East Carolina. The contest carries a 1 p.m. start time and will be played at the Mackesy Tennis Center at the Millie West Courts.
 
William & Mary 4, Delaware 3
Singles
No. 1 – Hedda Gurholt (W&M) def. Adel-Byanu Abidullina (UD) – 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (4)
No. 2 – Elisa Van Meeteren (W&M) def. Alina Vasilenko (UD) – 7-6 (5), 6-3
No. 3 – Sofiya Kuzina (W&M) def. Eliza Askarova (UD) – 6-3, 7-5
No. 4 – Emma Fernald (W&M) def. Toni Nelson (UD) – 6-4, 5-7, 6-2
No. 5 – Maryia Hrynashka (UD) def. Alisia Manolescu (W&M) – 7-5, 6-1
No. 6 – Julieta Honrubia (UD) def. Emma Pell (W&M) – 4-6, 6-3, 6-4
Finishing Order: 5, 2, 3, 6, 4, 1*
 
Doubles
No. 1 - #5 Abidullina/Askarova (UD) def. #50 Kuzina/Stange (W&M) – 6-2
No. 2 – Fernald/Van Meeteren (W&M) vs. Montana/Vasilenko (UD) – DNF, 5-5
No. 3 – Honrubia/Nelson (UD) def. Gurholt/Pell (W&M) – 6-4
Finishing Order: 1, 3*