CARY, N.C. – App State Tennis senior Savannah Dada-Mascoll concluded play at the ITA All-American Championships on Sunday, defeating five nationally ranked players, four of which were from SEC schools, to qualify for the NCAA Championships.
This is the second consecutive year Dada-Mascoll will represent the Mountaineers in the NCAA Championships. Last year, she competed in doubles with Isabela Romanichen. Dada-Mascoll is the first player in App State women’s tennis history to represent the Mountaineers in singles at the NCAA Championships, and is the first to earn multiple berths.
Dada-Mascoll opened competition with an upset to remember, defeating No. 1 DJ Bennett of Auburn 6-2, 2-6, 6-2 in the first round of the tournament. She then followed that up with a win against No. 51 Josie Userau of Arizona the next day to advance to the round of 16, where she fell to No. 43 Tatum Evans of North Carolina.
Despite the loss, she still had a chance to qualify for the NCAA Championships by making it to the final of the singles consolation bracket. She began her run by defeating No. 27 Bridget Stammel of Vanderbilt 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) for her second win over an SEC opponent of the week, moving her to the consolation quarterfinals.
She then defeated her third SEC opponent with a 6-4, 6-4 win over No. 13 Julia Garcia Ruiz of Oklahoma to move on to the consolation semifinals, putting her one win away from qualifying for the NCAA Championships in singles. Against No. 48 Ashton Bowers of Auburn, she took the first set 6-2 and followed it up with a 6-3 win in the second set to clinch her fourth SEC win and fifth ranked win of the tournament, securing her spot in the NCAA Championships.
Dada-Mascoll will represent the Mountaineers in the NCAA Championships from Nov. 18-23 in Orlando, Fla.
Results:
#106 Dada-Mascoll def. #1 DJ Bennett (Auburn) | 6-2, 2-6, 6-2
#106 Dada-Mascoll def. #51 Josie Userau (Arizona) | 6-1, 6-4
#106 Dada-Mascoll def. #27 Bridget Stammel (Vanderbilt) | 6-4, 7-6 (7-4)
#106 Dada-Mascoll def. #13 Julia Garcia Ruiz (Oklahoma) | 6-4, 6-4
#106 Dada-Mascoll def. #48 Ashton Bowers (Auburn) | 6-2, 6-3
