Defending-champion Grizzlies eliminate Gold Nuggets at NAIA national semifinals

MOBILE, Ala. — Defending-champion and top-seeded Georgia Gwinnett won two second-set tiebreakers Friday to clinch a 4-1 women’s tennis victory against Xavier University of Louisiana in the semifinals of NAIA nationals.

The Gold Nuggets’ only victory was at No. 5 singles, where McKenna Wheatley defeated Angel Carney 6-2, 6-1. That cut the Grizzlies’ lead to 2-1. But Georgia Gwinnett’s Iryna Lysykh won 6-2, 7-6 (7-5) against Kareemah Muhammad on court two to make it 3-1 — Lysykh trailed 4-2 in the tiebreaker — then Versace Gatti clinched on court four with a 6-3, 7-6 (8-6) decision against Kyra Akinnibi.

Gatti ended Akinnibi’s 15-match singles win streak.

XULA, ranked third in the final coaches poll and seeded fourth in this tournament, finished 23-6 and with a school-record for season victories. Georgia Gwinnett, 17-0 and a semifinal winner for the 10th consecutive year, will play second-seeded, second-ranked Keiser for the title at 1 p.m. Saturday.

Carol Mora and Justine Lespes won the final four games of a 6-2 decision against Akinnibi and Valaine Clarke to clinch the doubles point.

XULA freshman Amira Bergaoui led in two unfinished matches. Bergaoui and Valentina Largacha led 4-3 against Carney and Gatti, and Bergaoui led 6-3, 4-4 against Teodoro Jovic when the Grizzlies clinched.

The match started at 1 p.m. and ended at 9:03. In between were a lightning delay and three rain delays. Total competition time was two hours and 37 minutes.

The Grizzlies have played 14 matches this season against NAIA opponents, and XULA was the only team to score against them. XULA also lost 4-1 to Georgia Gwinnett in the title match of ITA NAIA indoor nationals in February.

Georgia Gwinnett ended XULA’s 12-match win streak and extended its win streak to 34. The Grizzlies won 97 of their last 98 matches.

Georgia Gwinnett will seek an eighth consecutive NAIA title Saturday, and Keiser will be the opponent for sixth consecutive time. The Seahawks defeated third-seeded Lindsey Wilson 4-0 in the other semifinal.