Goldsmith, Ewing End College Careers in NCAA Doubles Second Round

Credit to Sam Thornton | Assistant Director, Athletics Communications – 12thman.com

ORLANDO, Fla. – Texas A&M’s No. 22 Jayci Goldsmith/Salma Ewing concluded their collegiate careers in the NCAA Tournament Doubles Championships second round following a loss to South Carolina’s No. 33 Ayana Akli/Sarah Hamner (7-6(7), 6-3) Wednesday at the USTA National Campus.

The day’s match began outdoors, with Goldsmith/Ewing battling the Gamecocks’ Akli/Hamner back-and-forth throughout the entire first frame, as the teams were knotted at six and entered a tiebreaker. The match remained level as they were tied at seven in the breaker, however, it was South Carolina who found the edge and closed out the opening set (7-6(7)). At the conclusion of the first frame the rain began to fall and after a delay it was decided the match would be moved indoors. Following the move, the Aggies were tied early with the Gamecocks (3-3) but ultimately the match was closed out and won by Akli/Hamner (7-6(7), 6-3).

“What an amazing career Jayci [Goldsmith] has had for the Aggies,” head coach Mark Weaver said. “Her five years have gone by far too fast. She will go down as one of the most decorated individuals in the history of Texas A&M and played a tremendous part in our success in recent years.”

Goldsmith has been a five-year player for A&M and exemplified all it means to be an Aggie. The graduate has become the most decorated player in program history and this year broke both the all-time singles (116) and doubles (123) career wins records.

“Salma [Ewing] was a huge addition to our team,” Weaver added. “She made some great contributions to our program in a very short period of time and we’re very thankful she chose to finish out her college career in Aggieland.”

Ewing joined the Maroon & White from USC this spring, however, her impact has been exponential. The graduate quickly stepped into the program bringing a veteran leadership and a wealth of college tennis experience to aid a young A&M team.

MATCH RESULTS

Singles Results

(USC) No. 33 Ayana Akli/Sarah Hamner Def. (TAMU) No. 22 Salma Ewing/Jayci Goldsmith (7-6(7), 6-3)

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