MONROE, La. – ULM senior
Madalina Grigoriu and sophomore
Giovanna Pereira reached the finals in their respective brackets while two Warhawk doubles teams are in the semifinals after the first day of the Warhawk Invitational tennis tournament at Heard Stadium.
Grigoriu reached the Gold Bracket championship by defeating SFA's Nyah Kauders, 6-3, 6-2, in the opening round before topping Southeastern's Putri Insani, 7-6 (5), 6-1. She will face Arkansas State's Hunter Roper in the finals at 11 a.m. Saturday on court three.
Sophomore
Hala Badwy will play for third in the Gold Bracket after besting Samford's Alyssa Hayduk in the opening round, 7-5, 6-0. Badwy lost the semifinal to Roper, 0-6, 6-2 (10-7). She will face Insani at 11 a.m. Saturday on court seven.
In the Burgundy Bracket, junior
Jimena Paula Garbino will play for third after winning the first-round match over Southeastern's Ekaterina Oborina, 6-4, 2-6 (11-9). She dropped the semifinal to SFA's Anastasia Kouchnareva, 7-6 (1), 6-4. Garbino will take on SFA's Lucy Furness in the third-place match at 11 a.m. Saturday on court six.
Senior
Brianna Gomez plays Oborina at 11 a.m. Saturday on court five after brackets were crossed to allow two Southeastern players to avoid facing each other. Gomez lost her opening match to Arkansas State's Nejla Zukic, 7-6 (5), 4-6 (10-6). She rebounded with a win over Southeastern's Flory Bierma, 6-1, 6-1.
In the Black Bracket, freshman
Daniela Hernandez will play for third against Southeastern's Sonya Kanarskaya at 11 a.m. Saturday on court nine after beating Southeastern's Polina Sleptsova, 6-1, 6-4, in the first round and dropping the semifinal to SFA's Elise Frigout, 6-4, 6-2.
Pereira won both of her matches in the White Bracket, beating A-State's Yasmine Humbert in the first round, 6-3, 6-3, and SFA's Ai Noa Fabre in the semifinals, 6-3, 6-4. She will face SFA's Elena Bleicher in the championship at 11 a.m. Saturday on court 4.
In doubles action, the ULM tandem of Grigoriu and Hernandez won their first-round match over Samford's Hayduk and Lauren Waddles, 6-4. The duo will square off with A-State's Zukic and Thea Rice in the War Bracket semifinals at 9 a.m. Saturday on court three.
Badwy and Pereira dropped their opening match in the War Bracket to A-State's Roper and Emily Surcey, 6-2. They play in the consolation bracket against SFA's Ule and Cerda at 9 a.m. Saturday on court 2.
In the Hawks bracket, ULM's Garbino and Gomez opened with a win over SFA's Kouchnareva and Bleicher, 6-2. They face A-State's Rebecca Brody and Sofia Vdovychenko at 9 a.m. Saturday on court four.
