SAN DIEGO, Calif. – Led by senior Emily Tannenbaum breaking another program record, the Navy women's tennis team closed out its stay at the fourth annual San Diego Veterans Tennis Classic on Sunday.
 
The three-day tournament at the University of San Diego's Skip and Cindy Hogan Tennis Complex saw Tannenbaum pace the Midshipmen with a combined 6-0 record on the weekend and pick up the tournament's Most Valuable Player honors, while also matching and then surpassing the program record for career doubles wins with 74.
 
Opening up the trip on Friday, Navy picked up its first victory of the weekend when Tannenbaum and fellow senior Parvathi Shanker scored a 6-2 doubles win over San Diego's Filippa Bruu-Syversen and Kristina Nordikyan, tying Tannenbaum for the previous program record of 72 doubles wins by Kaylah Hodge. In the other Navy doubles match, seniors Sylvia Eklund and Kate Lee fell to Loyola Marymount's Anastasia Bozova and Kim-Michaela Zahraj, 6-4.
 
In the first round of singles action, Tannenbaum then scored a 6-2, 6-2 win over Bruu-Syversen, while Eklund fell to USD's Hannah Read, 6-4, 6-2, Nordikyan knocked off Shanker by a 6-3, 6-0 final and Bozova battled past Lee, 7-5, 6-4.
 
Saturday's doubles play then had Tannenbaum and Shanker beat LMU's Camilia Samel-Druz and Fiona Arrese, 6-0, for Tannenbaum's record-breaking 73rd career doubles win, but Eklund and Lee were upended by the Fresno State duo of Yinglak Jittakoat and Eliza Dunbar. Continuing into singles competition, Tannenbaum defeated Samel-Druz in a 6-0, 6-2 match, but Eklund was beat by Arrese, 7-5, 6-3, while Bozova outlasted Shanker in a 6-4, 1-6, 6-2 battle, while Zahraj held on for a 6-1, 7-6 (3) victory against Lee.
 
Sunday featured Tannenbaum and Shanker pulling out a 6-4 win over Fresno State's Andjela Lopicic and Klara Vukicevic, while Eklund and Lee were defeated by Dunbar and Gianna Mastro, 6-2. Closing out the tournament with another singles slate, Tannenbaum handled Dunbar for a 6-1, 6-0 victory and Eklund notched her first win of the weekend by routing Mastro, 6-0, 6-2.
 
This marks Tannenbaum's second time winning the San Diego Veterans Tennis Classic's MVP award, previously earning the honor in 2022 after going a combined 5-1. Tannenbaum also received the SDVTC Leadership Award at the event in 2023.

Head Coach Keith Puryear Comments
"Coach Ale and I thank Chas Mulcahy, Richard Evert and Steve Kappes and the San Diego Veterans Tennis Classic committee, University of San Diego coaches Nadia Abdala and Ryan Keckley, our host families Mary Ann McCauley and Amanda Estrada, Beth Mulcahy Elardo and all our families and fans who all came out to say hi and support Navy Tennis. To our alumni and their families, which are too many to name personally, we thank you for your support. It was great to see each of you and families. We love and respect you and are proud of your service to our nation. Special thanks to Coach Ale for organizing the meetings with our alumni. It was an amazing weekend on several levels. The support we received, the organization of the event and the competition all make this event a very unique and special experience for us. These four seniors have meant everything to this program. Each and every one of them is an amazing person and leader. It was a privilege to have them represent our team and the Academy on this stage. Whether it was at the welcome dinner when talking with dignitaries, business leaders and tournament staff, to their interactions with fans, alumni and tournament followers, or on court battling for the Blue and Gold, they represented us impeccably. They impressed everyone they came into contact with over the weekend. Their play was inspired and many lessons were learned that will push us further to the goals we've set for this season. I first congratulate Parv and Emily on their play in doubles this week. Coach Ale did a great job guiding them to an undefeated weekend against some great competition. Lastly to Emily, she was again recognized as the MVP of the event. Her play was stellar. It seems every time she swings a racket, another record is in danger of being broken. This is another one for the history books! To go through the event without the loss of a set says a lot about her performance this weekend. It was exciting to see her put the pieces into place and roll through her competition. We'll take these experiences with us as we compete against the best in our region in Charlottesville next week at ITAs."

Associate Head Coach Alessandra Pedergnana Comments
"Solid weekend of competition against teams we do not normally get to see during the season. It was extra special to be able to take our four seniors who have meant so much to this program. Special thanks to San Diego Veterans Classic, the committee, coaches and teams, volunteers and those who house us during this event. It is one of our favorite tournaments. It is always great to see our many alums who are stationed in San Diego and have them not only watch our team compete but meet some of the ladies as well. The support is unmatched. Back to work next week as we continue to get better each rep we take."
 
Up Next
Navy will next head to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's Atlantic Regional Championships on Oct. 17-22 in Charlottesville, Va.