Wayne State University Athletics

Manuela Davies/USTA

Shanice Weekes finished 2-1 in both singles and doubles at the Northwood Invitational.

Women's Tennis 10/23/2023 8:27:00 PM Matthew Jurek, Sports Information Graduate Assistant

Women's Tennis Posts Strong Effort at Northwood Invitational

The Warriors won 13 singles and seven doubles matches across the two-day event.

MIDLAND, Mich. -- The Wayne State University women's tennis squad completed its two-day event at the Northwood Invitational on Monday in Midland, Mich.

Seven Warriors saw playing time during the fourth tournament on the fall schedule. Those seven were Malak Arafat (Alexandria, Egypt), Justine Beaulieu (Montreal, Que.), Dea Gorgidze (Tbilisi, Georgia), Marta Komar (Inowroclaw, Poland), Anais Ruyssen (Nantes, France), Martyna Szpakowska (Gdansk, Poland), and Shanice Weekes (London, England).

WSU was joined in Midland by the host Northwood Timberwolves, the Saginaw Valley State Cardinals, and the Tiffin Dragons. Each team played one another in both singles and doubles over the course of the two-day invitational. Matches were similar to what is typically seen in dual matches during the spring, but without overall team scores.

The Northwood Invitational was a good test for the Green and Gold, as they will battle each of the other three schools once again during the 2024 spring slate. Those contests are on March 20 (vs. Tiffin), March 29 (at Saginaw Valley State), and April 2 (at Northwood) -- which amounts to be back-to-back-to-back matches on the schedule.

In 2023, Wayne State defeated Northwood 6-1 on February 12 and shut out Saginaw Valley State (7-0) and Tiffin (7-0) in back-to-back matches on April 4 and April 6 on its way to an overall 24-4 record for the campaign.

Below are the results from each Wayne State contest against NU, SVSU, and TU.

Wayne State vs. Tiffin - (4-2 Singles and 1-2 Doubles)
Singles:
1. Maeva Maxch def. Marta Komar, 6-3, 6-1
2. Malak Arafat def. Anaelle Lepinay, 5-7, 6-3, 10-7
3. Jemimah Choi def. Shanice Weekes, 7-5, 7-5
4. Dea Gorgidze def. Sarah Roy, 6-2, 6-3
5. Martyna Szpakowska def. Carina Avram, 6-2, 6-3
6. Justine Beaulieu def. Emily Barrett, 6-4, 6-4

Doubles:
1. Marta Komar/Dea Gorgidze def. Emily Barrett/Anaelle Lepinay, 8-3
2. Maeva Maxch/Carina Avram def. Malak Arafat/Justine Beaulieu, 8-5
3. Sarah Roy/Jemimah Choi def. Shanice Weekes/Martyna Szpakowska, 8-2

Saginaw Valley State vs. Wayne State - (4-2 Singles and 3-0 Doubles)
Singles:
1. Adriana Barrio Garcia De Leaniz def. Marta Komar, 3-6, 6-0, 10-8
2. Malak Arafat def. Tara Erler, 6-1, 6-0
3. Shanice Weekes def. Johanna Michahelles, 6-4, 6-2
4. Calli Sokolowski def. Dea Gorgidze, 2-6, 6-3, 12-10
5. Martyna Szpakowska def. Amelia Dickson, 6-0, 6-0
6. Justine Beaulieu def. Lydia Liong, 6-3, 6-4

Doubles:
1. Anais Ruyssen/Marta Komar def. Tara Erler/Adriana Barrio Garcia De Leaniz, 8-5
2. Malak Arafat/Justine Beaulieu def. Amelia Dickson/Johanna Michahelles, 8-5
3. Shanice Weekes/Martyna Szpakowska def. Calli Sokolowski/Elizabeth Stuart, 8-5

Northwood vs. Wayne State - (5-1 Singles and 3-0 Doubles)
Singles:
1. Malak Arafat def. Rafaella Platsiota, 6-3, 6-3
2. Danijela Danilovic def. Marta Komar, 6-4, 6-2
3. Shanice Weekes def. Savannah Matuszewski, 6-0, 6-1
4. Dea Gorgidze def. Yuliia Khmara, 3-6, 6-3, 10-7
5. Justine Beaulieu def. Regan Fales, 4-6, 6-3, 10-5
6. Martyna Szpakowska def. Sophia Baker, 6-0, 6-1

Doubles:
1. Anais Ruyssen/Marta Komar def. Rafaella Platsiota/Danijela Danilovic, 8-5
2. Dea Gorgidze/Justine Beaulieu def. Regan Fales/Savannah Matuszewski, 9-7
3. Shanice Weekes/Martyna Szpakowska def. Sophia Baker/Yuliia Khmara, 8-2

Overall, the Green and Gold went 13-5 in singles and 7-2 in doubles for the invitational. Arafat, Szpakowska, and Beaulieu were a perfect 3-0 in their singles matches, while Gorgidze and Weekes finished 2-1. Komar ended the two days at 0-3.

However, the redshirt junior Komar was spotless in her three doubles matches (3-0) despite having two partners. She notched two wins with her typical doubles partner Ruyssen, and collected the other win with Gorgidze in their first match together this season, and second ever, as a doubles tandem.

Speaking of Gorgidze and Ruyssen, they each went 2-0 in doubles as the other two Warriors to post a perfect ledger. The redshirt sophomore Gorgidze teamed up with freshman Beaulieu for her other triumph at the invitational. Weekes, Szpakowska, and Beaulieu were 2-1 in doubles, while Arafat ended up 1-1.

The Warriors have now completed four fall events, including the ITA Midwest Regional and the ITA Cup on the regional and national stage. They will next look ahead to hosting the Wayne State Doubles Tournament on Friday, November 3 at 11 a.m. Findlay, Tiffin, Oakland, and the Warriors will be competing at the event.

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Players Mentioned

Malak Arafat: 5' 11"; Sophomore

Justine Beaulieu: 5' 4"; Freshman

Dea Gorgidze: 5' 7"; Redshirt Sophomore

Marta Komar: 5' 9"; Redshirt Junior

Anais Ruyssen: 5' 9"; Redshirt Junior

Martyna Szpakowska: 5' 8"; Sophomore

Shanice Weekes: 5' 4"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Malak Arafat
: 5' 11"; Sophomore

Justine Beaulieu
: 5' 4"; Freshman

Dea Gorgidze
: 5' 7"; Redshirt Sophomore

Marta Komar
: 5' 9"; Redshirt Junior

Anais Ruyssen
: 5' 9"; Redshirt Junior

Martyna Szpakowska
: 5' 8"; Sophomore

Shanice Weekes
: 5' 4"; Sophomore