JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The App State tennis team defeated Lipscomb 4-3 in a neutral-site thriller Friday on North Florida's campus, coming out on top in a season defined by winner-take-all sets.
Friday's match marked the fifth time this season the outcome came down to the final set of singles play with the match score tied 3-3. After dropping all four of those previous occurrences, the Mountaineers (6-7) turned the tide through
Sreenidhi Balaji, who clinched the victory in a three-set nail-biter to secure her fourth consecutive win.
Eighth-ranked
Savannah Dada-Mascoll cruised to her 11th straight win, recording her second bagel of the season in a 6-0, 6-3 straight-set win at No. 1.
Taya Powell snapped a two-match skid, picking up a critical win at the No. 3 spot to tie the match at 3-3.
How It Happened
App State opened the match by clinching the doubles point with wins at Nos. 1 and 3. Dada-Mascoll and Powell improved to 7-3 on the season, while the freshman duo of Balaji and
Allegra Hodson moved to 6-2 with their sixth straight victory.
Dada-Mascoll finished first in singles play to put App State ahead 2-0 over Lipscomb (6-6), moving her record to 11-1 on the season. Losses at Nos. 4, 2, and 6 put the Mountaineers in a 3-2 hole, leaving them one point away from defeat.
Powell secured her win in straight sets, avoiding tiebreaks in both by winning 7-5, 7-5. Balaji then closed it out for the Mountaineers, overcoming the team's previous late-match struggles to win a three-set battle 7-5, 5-7, 6-2 at the No. 5 spot.
Up Next
The Mountaineers remain in Jacksonville to take on No. 72 North Florida on Saturday. First serve at the UNF Tennis Center is slated for 1 p.m.
The 2025-26 season is presented by Hound Ears Club.
Results:
(Doubles)
Savannah Dada-Mascoll/
Taya Powell (APP) def. Mariia Dolzhenko/S. Bobrovnikova (LIP) | 6-1
Ruby Broadbent/
Naledi Manyube (APP) vs. Deborah D. Collado/Sofiia Paladi (LIP) | unfinished
Allegra Hodson/
Sreenidhi Balaji (APP) def. Martina Bovio/Kameliia Tytarenko (LIP) | 6-4
(Singles)
#8
Savannah Dada-Mascoll (APP) def. Sofiia Paladi (LIP) | 6-0, 6-3
Mariia Dolzhenko (LIP) def.
Naledi Manyube (APP) | 7-5, 7-5
Taya Powell (APP) def. Deborah D. Collado (LIP) | 7-5, 7-5
S. Bobrovnikova (LIP) def.
Allegra Hodson (APP) | 6-2, 6-2
Sreenidhi Balaji (APP) def. Martina Bovio (LIP) | 7-5, 5-7, 6-2
Sofiia Zhylchuk (LIP) def.
Ruby Broadbent (APP) | 6-4, 7-6 (3-0)
