Senior Fernanda Labraña claimed the Flight 5 singles title at the 34th annual Debbie Southern Furman Fall Classic. The Texas women’s tennis team sent six Longhorns to compete in the tournament in Greenville, South Carolina from September 17-19. Labraña came out on top in the fifth- ranked group after winning all three of her singles matches.

On Friday, the Longhorns had seven victories across the board. 

Sophomore Malaika Rapolu beat No. 5-ranked Georgia Drummy from Duke in three sets: 6-2, 2-6, 6-4. The unranked Texas sophomore had her impressive win over Drummy in Flight 2.

Day one also saw Labraña’s first singles win, while freshmen Bella Zamarripa and Grace Thomas, sophomore Simran Kortikere and junior Gabby Cusano fell to their opponents.

In doubles, Labraña and Thomas defeated their matchups in Flight 5 from Vanderbilt and Georgia Tech 6-3 and 6-4 respectively. In Flight 6, Cusano and Kortikere also won both of their matches, while in Flight 3, Rapolu and Zamarripa won one match and lost the other. Thomas suffered an ankle injury in singles play and had to sit out the next two days of the tournament.

Saturday saw both singles and doubles action again. Labraña’s 6-4, 6-2 victory over Duke’s Eliza Omirou and Kortikere’s 6-3, 6-4 win in Flight 12 over Dani Schoenly from Ohio State highlighted the day. 

Rapolu was defeated 6-2, 6-3 by Vanderbilt’s Anessa Lee, Zamarripa lost 6-2, 6-2 to Casie Wooden of Wake Forest in Flight 4 and Cusano fell to South Carolina’s Chloe Narboni 6-1, 6-0 in Flight 11. The Longhorns also fell short in both doubles matches, Rapolu and Zamarripa to a pair from Vanderbilt and Kortikere and Cusano to a duo from Clemson.

The final day of the tournament featured singles play only. The Longhorns finished Sunday with two wins and three losses. 

Labraña earned her third singles win of the weekend, securing her Flight 5 singles title and Kortikere added her second singles win after defeating Maddie McKee from Mississippi State. Rapolu, Zamarripa and Cusano rounded out their weekend with losses against players from South Carolina, Tennessee and South Carolina respectively.