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Emma Pell pumps her first after winning a point during the Tribe Invitational.

Women's Tennis Turns in Strong Effort at Cissie Leary Invitational

10/5/2025 10:57:00 PM

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - William & Mary women's tennis enjoyed an impressive showing over the weekend, competing at the Cissie Leary Invitational. Facing players from Maryland, Princeton, Penn, St. Joseph's, Drexel, and Cornell, the Tribe amassed a combined 19-9 singles record and a 10-2 doubles mark over the three-day event at the Hamlin and Hecht Tennis Centers.
 
In singles, senior Emma Pell and junior Francesca Davis went a perfect 3-0. Five Tribe players - seniors Sia Chaudry and Yaelle Vaissaud, sophomore Mira Kernagis, and freshmen Alexia Gonzalez-Galino and Julia Viesi - put together 2-1 singles marks. In doubles, Davis teamed with freshman Tilda Larson to go a perfect 3-0, while two Tribe pairs - Chaudry and freshman Rebeka Svabikova as well as the pair of Pell and Viesi - tallied undefeated 2-0 marks.
 
The Tribe was even more impressive over the final two days of the event. Facing Penn and St. Joseph's in singles on Saturday, W&M put together an 8-2 mark. In doubles against the Hawks and CAA foe Drexel, the Tribe went 4-1 in doubles. On Sunday, the Tribe was nearly perfect against Cornell and St. Joseph's, going 7-1 in singles and 4-0 in doubles. Over Saturday and Sunday, the Tribe was an impressive 15-3 in singles and 8-1 in doubles.
 
Davis opened the event with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Maryland's Tamari Gagoshidze. After recording a come-from-behind three-set win over Penn's Lara Stojanovski, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2, on Saturday, she closed out an undefeated event with a 6-1, 7-6 victory over Cornell's Sage Loudon. Davis remained unbeaten on the year at 6-0.
 
Thanks to her trio of wins at the Invitational, Pell also extended her undefeated start to the fall to 5-0. She needed three sets, but dispatched of Princeton's Anna Nguyen , 6-3, 3-6, 6-2, on Friday. Pell won in straight sets over St. Joseph's June Tronhus, 6-4, 6-2, and rallied for a three-set win over Cornell's Martina Marica, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1, on Sunday.
 
In doubles, Davis and Larsson improved to 6-0 during the fall with their trio of wins. The duo opened the event with an 8-7 victory over Maryland's Magdalena Baniak and Tamari Gagoshidze. They posted an 8-4 win over a tandem from Drexel on Saturday and bounced Cornell's Sage Loudon and Emma Baker, 8-5, a day later. 
 
Pell and Viesi picked up a pair of narrow wins in teaming together for the first time. They topped Maryland's Katherine Hung and Aida Eissa, 8-7, and downed the St. Joseph's pair of Wiktoria Czerny and Victoria Tracey, 8-6.
 
Chaudry and Svabikova were dominant in two wins over St. Joseph's teams. They dropped just one game in an 8-1 win over  Amari O'Brien and Brooke Tackett, before rolling to an 8-2 victory over Elena Fleming and June Tronhus.
 
After dropping her match on Friday in three sets, Chaudry bounced back with three-set wins on Saturday and Sunday. She rallied for a win over Penn's Maya Urata, 2-6, 7-5, 6-3, before downing Cornell's Michelle Ryndin, 6-4, 0-6, 6-3, to even her fall mark at 3-3.
 
Gonzalez-Galino picked victories over Princeton's Maren Urata, 6-4, 6-4, and Cornell's Emma Baker, 6-2, 4-6, 6-1. The Tribe rookie pushed her season record to 3-2.
 
Vaissaud and Kernagis won their final two singles matches of the event. Vaissaud topped St. Joseph's Brooke Tackett in three sets, 6-4, 4-6, 6-1, and closed out the Invite with dominant fashion, dropping just one game in a 6-1, 6-0 win over Cornell's Tanya Fan. Kernagis needed three sets, but came back for a 5-7, 6-0, 6-0 win over St. Joseph's Amari O'Brien. She also posted a 6-4, 6-4 win over Cornell's Dylan Gelber to push her season mark to 3-2.
 
Viesi posted straight-set wins over Princeton's Alicia Cheng, 6-0, 6-0, and St. Joseph's Gisele Tang, 6-2, 6-2. She moved to 3-3 on the year.
 
Larsson picked up her first career Tribe singles win. She posted a 7-5, 7-5 straight-sets win over Victoria Tracey of St. Joseph's.  Fellow rookie Svabikova rallied for a three-set win over Penn's Liza Tkachenko, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, for her third win of the fall. Junior Parker Debnam picked up her second win of the fall season, downing St. Joseph's Gisele Tang, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2.
 
Kernagis and Gonzalez-Galino won their final two matches of the Invitational to even their record at 3-3 on the year. The pair won convincingly over a Drexel team, 8-1, on Saturday, before upending Cornell's Dylan Gelber and Andrea Martinez De Los Rios, 8-2, on Sunday.
 
Vaissaud and Debnam also posted a doubles win at the event, topping the St. Joseph's pair of Amari O'Brien and Brooke Tackett, 8-4.
 
The Tribe returns to action at the ITA Atlantic Region Championships, Oct. 16-21. Virgina Tech will host the event at the Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center in Blacksburg.
 
W&M Results from Cissie Leary Invitational
Friday, Oct. 3
Singles
Magdalena Baniak (Maryland) def. Sia Chaudry (W&M) - 6-0, 2-6, 6-3
Madeleine Jessup (Princeton) def. Tilda Larsson (W&M) - 6-4, 7-6
Francesca Davis (W&M) def. Tamari Gagoshidze (Maryland) - 6-4, 6-2
Bella Chhiv (Princeton) def. Yaelle Vaissaud (W&M) - 6-2, 6-0
Lucia Donnelly (Maryland) def. Mira Kernagis (W&M) - 6-3, 6-2
Emma Pell (W&M) def. Anna Nguyen (Princeton) - 6-3, 3-6, 6-2
Diya Challa (Maryland) def. Rebeka Svabikova (W&M) - 6-3, 6-3
Alexia Gonzalez-Galino (W&M) def. Maren Urata (Princeton) - 6-4, 6-4
Katherine Hung (Maryland) def. Parker Debnam (W&M) -  6-4, 6-4
Julia Viesi (W&M) def. Alicia Cheng (Princeton) - 6-0, 6-0
 
Doubles
Davis/Larsson (W&M) def. Gagoshidze/Baniak (Maryland) - 8-7
Challa/Donnelly (Maryland) def. Kernagis/Gonzalez Galino (W&M) -  8-6
Pell/Viesi (W&M) def. Hung/Eissa (Maryland) - 8-7
 
Saturday, Oct. 4
Singles
Sia Chaudry (W&M) def. Maya Urata (Penn) - 2-6, 7-5, 6-3
Francesca Davis (W&M) def. Lara Stojanovski (Penn) - 3-6, 6-1, 6-2
Joleen Saw (Penn) def. Alexia Gonzalez-Galinos (W&M) - 7-5, 0-6, 6-4
Rebeka Svabikova (W&M) def. Liza Tkachenko (Penn) - 3-6, 7-5, 6-3
Tilda Larsson (W&M) def. Victoria Tracey (St. Joe's) - 7-5, 7-5
Emma Pell (W&M) def. June Tronhus (St. Joe's) - 6-4, 6-2
Elena Fleming (St. Joe's) def. Julia Viesi (W&M) - 4-6, 6-0, 6-4
Yaelle Vaissaud (W&M) def. Brooke Tackett (St. Joe's) - 6-4, 4-6, 6-1
Mira Kernagis (W&M) def. Amari O'Brien (St. Joe's) - 5-7, 6-0, 6-0
Parker Debnam (W&M) def. Gisele Tang (St. Joe's) - 6-4, 4-6, 6-2
 
Doubles
Viesi/Pell (W&M) def. Czerny/Tracey (St. Joe's) - 8-6
Fleming/Tronhus (St. Joe's) def. Vaissaud/Debnam (W&M) - 8-6
Chaudry/Svabikova (W&M) def. O'Brien/Tackett (St. Joe's) - 8-1
Davis/Larsson (W&M) def. Lemongo/ (Drexel) - 8-4
Kernagis/Gonzalez Galino (W&M) def. Drexel - 8-1
 
Sunday, Oct. 5
Singles
Sia Chaudry (W&M) def. Michelle Ryndin (Cornell) - 6-4, 0-6, 6-3
Francesca Davis (W&M) def. Sage Loudon (Cornell) - 6-1, 7-6
Mira Kernagis (W&M) def. Dylan Gelber (Cornell) - 6-4, 6-4
Andrea Martinez De Los Rios (Cornell) def. Rebeka Svabikova (W&M) - 6-1, 1-6, 2-6
Alexia Gonzalez-Galino (W&M) def. Emma Baker (Cornell) - 6-2, 4-6, 6-1
Emma Pell (W&M) def. Martina Marica (Cornell) - 4-6, 6-2, 6-1
Yaelle Vaissaud (W&M) def. Tanya Fan (Cornell) - 6-1, 6-0
Julia Viesi (W&M) def. Gisele Tang (St. Joe's) - 6-2, 6-2
 
Doubles
Davis/Larsson (W&M) def. Baker/Loudon (Cornell) - 8-5
Kernagis/Gonzalez Galino (W&M) def. De Los Rios/Gelber (Cornell) - 8-2
Svabikova/Chaudry (W&M) def. Fleming/Tronhus (St. Joe's) - 8-2
Vaissaud/Debnam (W&M) def. O'Brien/Tackett (St. Joe's) - 8-4
 
 
 
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