Sunday, February 3
Chestnut Hill, Mass.
11:00 AM
Boston College
4
vs
3
Syracuse
Photo by: Alastair Ingram
Eagles Make History on the Heights with Upset of No. 10 Syracuse
February 03, 2019 | Women's Tennis
CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. – Boston College made history on Super Bowl Sunday, upsetting 10th-ranked Syracuse 4-3 in the ACC opener for its first victory over a top-10 program in team history. Spanish rookie Laura Lopez clinched the upset by beating Dina Hegab 7-6, 6-3 in the No. 5 singles slot roughly five hours into the match at the Flynn Recreation Complex.
"I am so proud of how hard our girls compete," said head coach Nigel Bentley. "They have worked so hard. They understand there are no short cuts. They earned an awesome win today against a top-10 team. Our captain senior Jackie Urbinati had another amazing third set comeback and everyone really fed off her energy. Yufei Long was outstanding beating one of the nation's top players."
BC improved to 7-0 to start the spring season and 1-0 in conference play.
Boston College shuffled its pairings on Sunday and pulled out the doubles point to begin the match with the nationally ranked Orange. Dasha Possokhova and Elene Tsokilauri executed an upset of the 24th-ranked duo of Sofya Treshcheva and Sofya Golubovskaya by a 6-3 final. Natasha Irani and Kylie Wilcox then came back from 5-2 down to defeat the team of Hegab and Guzal Yusupova in No. 3 doubles 7-5.
Long began the singles matchups with a straight set victory over 43rd-ranked Gabriela Knutson 6-4, 6-4 from the No. 1 slot. After dropping the first set, Urbinati came back to beat Miranda Ramirez 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 to put BC ahead 3-0. The Orange came back to even the match through victories from Golubovskaya, Yusupova and Treshcheva in the No. 2, 4 and 6 slots.
Lopez won the first set of the deciding match in a tiebreaker, setting up a dramatic second set as the rookie tried to clinch the upset. With a 5-3 lead and Hegab serving at deuce, Lopez's return was sent wide left to make it official as the Eagles stormed the court.
"To watch Laura get her first ACC win under that kind of pressure was tremendous to witness. The doubles teams battled hard every point, and everybody contributed to this complete team win. I'm very happy for our team and program, it's a great day for BC women's tennis."
Next weekend, undefeated BC hosts Boston University and Rhode Island in a doubleheader on Saturday (Feb. 9) on the Heights at 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
DOUBLES
1. Gabriela Knutson / Miranda Ramirez (SU) def. Yufei Long / Jackie Urbinati (BC) 7-5
2. Dasha Possokhova / Elene Tsokilauri (BC) def. #24 Sofya Treshcheva / Sofya Golubovskaya (SU) 6-3
3. Natasha Irani / Kylie Wilcox (BC) def. Dina Hegab / Guzal Yusupova (SU) 7-5
SINGLES
1. Yufei Long (BC) def. #43 Gabriela Knutson (SU) 6-4, 6-4
2. #92 Sofya Golubovskaya (SU) def. Kylie Wilcox (BC) 6-2, 4-6, 6-4
3. Jackie Urbinati (BC) def. Miranda Ramirez (SU) 3-6, 6-3, 6-4
4. Guzal Yusupova (SU) def. Natasha Irani (BC) 6-2, 4-6, 7-5
5. Laura Lopez (BC) def. Dina Hegab (SU) 7-6(5), 6-3
6. Sofya Treshcheva (SU) def. Dasha Possokhova (BC) 6-3, 6-2
"I am so proud of how hard our girls compete," said head coach Nigel Bentley. "They have worked so hard. They understand there are no short cuts. They earned an awesome win today against a top-10 team. Our captain senior Jackie Urbinati had another amazing third set comeback and everyone really fed off her energy. Yufei Long was outstanding beating one of the nation's top players."
BC improved to 7-0 to start the spring season and 1-0 in conference play.
Boston College shuffled its pairings on Sunday and pulled out the doubles point to begin the match with the nationally ranked Orange. Dasha Possokhova and Elene Tsokilauri executed an upset of the 24th-ranked duo of Sofya Treshcheva and Sofya Golubovskaya by a 6-3 final. Natasha Irani and Kylie Wilcox then came back from 5-2 down to defeat the team of Hegab and Guzal Yusupova in No. 3 doubles 7-5.
Long began the singles matchups with a straight set victory over 43rd-ranked Gabriela Knutson 6-4, 6-4 from the No. 1 slot. After dropping the first set, Urbinati came back to beat Miranda Ramirez 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 to put BC ahead 3-0. The Orange came back to even the match through victories from Golubovskaya, Yusupova and Treshcheva in the No. 2, 4 and 6 slots.
Lopez won the first set of the deciding match in a tiebreaker, setting up a dramatic second set as the rookie tried to clinch the upset. With a 5-3 lead and Hegab serving at deuce, Lopez's return was sent wide left to make it official as the Eagles stormed the court.
"To watch Laura get her first ACC win under that kind of pressure was tremendous to witness. The doubles teams battled hard every point, and everybody contributed to this complete team win. I'm very happy for our team and program, it's a great day for BC women's tennis."
Next weekend, undefeated BC hosts Boston University and Rhode Island in a doubleheader on Saturday (Feb. 9) on the Heights at 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
DOUBLES
1. Gabriela Knutson / Miranda Ramirez (SU) def. Yufei Long / Jackie Urbinati (BC) 7-5
2. Dasha Possokhova / Elene Tsokilauri (BC) def. #24 Sofya Treshcheva / Sofya Golubovskaya (SU) 6-3
3. Natasha Irani / Kylie Wilcox (BC) def. Dina Hegab / Guzal Yusupova (SU) 7-5
SINGLES
1. Yufei Long (BC) def. #43 Gabriela Knutson (SU) 6-4, 6-4
2. #92 Sofya Golubovskaya (SU) def. Kylie Wilcox (BC) 6-2, 4-6, 6-4
3. Jackie Urbinati (BC) def. Miranda Ramirez (SU) 3-6, 6-3, 6-4
4. Guzal Yusupova (SU) def. Natasha Irani (BC) 6-2, 4-6, 7-5
5. Laura Lopez (BC) def. Dina Hegab (SU) 7-6(5), 6-3
6. Sofya Treshcheva (SU) def. Dasha Possokhova (BC) 6-3, 6-2
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
Better Together | BC Men's Basketball All-Access | EPISODE 1
Friday, October 10
Football: Head Coach Bill O'Brien Media Availability (October 9, 2025)
Thursday, October 09
Football: Jude Bowry Media Availability (October 9, 2025)
Thursday, October 09
Football: KP Price Media Availability (October 9, 2025)
Thursday, October 09
