Sept. 27, 2008

PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. - Jelena Stanivuk won two singles matches to advance through the first day of the Pre-Qualifying Singles competition at the Riviera/ITA All-American tournament hosted by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association and Pepperdine.

Stanivuk defeated Leigh Finnegan of Illinois, 7-6(3), 7-5, in the first round of competition on Saturday morning. In the afternoon session, Stanivuk cruised past Brown's Bianca Aboubakare, 6-1, 6-3.

"We played some solid tennis today but definitely have room for improvement," said head coach Joey Scrivano. "I like the way Jelena found a way to win against a tough opponent in the first round. In her second match she hit the ball cleaner and was in control of the match right from the start."

Stanivuk will face Amanda Granson of Duke on Sunday at 12 noon in the third round of the pre-qualifying draw. Granson won in three sets over Sarah Lancaster of Texas before winning in straight sets over DePaul's Dunja Antunovic.

Karolina Filipiak won her first round match against Elizabeth Carpenter of Wisconsin 6-2, 6-4. She fell in the second round to Boise State's Pichitta Thongdach, 6-3, 6-3.

"Karolina has improved a lot over the summer and it showed for most of today," said Scrivano. "She ran into a buzz saw in the second round and just didn't play well on the big points. I believe she'll keep improving and play even better in her next event."

Stanivuk returns to action on Sunday afternoon, while the Qualifying Draw and Main Draw will continue through next week.