MALIBU, Calif. – Winthrop women's tennis senior Alisa Soloveva competed nationally Thursday and Friday at the prestigious 2019 Oracle ITA Masters championship as the top returning player in the Big South Conference. The event showcases top collegiate players in the country, with 32 players of each gender in the men's and women's singles draws, each also competing in mixed doubles.
 
Soloveva opened play Thursday in the mixed doubles competition on campus at Pepperdine University, paired with fellow league standout Amadeo Blasco of Longwood University. The 23-seed duo advanced in the bracket with a 6-4 win over ninth-seeded Joseph Guillin (UC Santa Barbara) and Petra Melounova (Hawaii) out of the Big West Conference. Blasco and Soloveva's run ended later in the day Thursday at the hands of No. 7 Sven Lah (Baylor)  and Natasha Subhash (Virginia), 6-2.
 
In the singles competition, 21-seed Soloveva notched a win over a nationally ranked opponent in the opening round. The Chelyabinsk, Russia, native took down No. 20 Asuka Kawai (Illinois), the 12-seed in the tournament, in three sets. Kawai snagged the first set 6-4, but the ever-steady Soloveva turned around the second set for a 6-1 victory and commanded the deciding third set, 6-3.
 
Advancing to play on Friday at the Malibu Racquet Club, Soloveva faced UCLA's Jada Hart, the fifth-seeded player in the tournament and No. 9 player in the nation. Hart came away with a 6-2, 6-0 win.
 
Soloveva was a First-Team All-Big South selection in 2019, her third-consecutive season earning the distinction. She posted an impressive 19-1 dual match record at the No. 2 position, including an undefeated 9-0 mark in league play and an 18-match winning streak after her sole loss.
 
Soloveva's win over Kawai is her third win over a nationally ranked opponent in the 2019 calendar year. She defeated No. 95 Anna Ulyashchenko (Wake Forest) and No. 75 Alana Smith (NC State) during the spring dual match season.