TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Former FSU women’s tennis player Nicola Slater (GBR) captured the doubles title at the 11th Annual Boyd Tinsley Clay Court Classic in Charlottesville, Va. last week. The USTA Pro Circuit event took place at the Boar’s Head Sports Club and was held the week of April 22.
The tournament was sponsored by longtime tennis fan, Boyd Tinsley, who is the violinist for the Dave Matthew’s Band.
Slater was teamed up with CoCo Vandeweghe (USA) for the first time in their careers, posting a ranking of No. 572. The pair won four matches en route to the championship.
“The win was huge,” Slater said. “Since I’ve committed to doubles, I’ve been doing well in the past five or six months. I’ve had a big mental breakthrough from this tournament and the results punctuate the positive change. It has given me confidence and a great deal of momentum for the next six months.”
Positioned at the bottom of the 16-teamed bracket, Slater and Vandeweghe first defeated No. 544 Sanaz Marand (USA) and Ashley Weinhold (USA), 4-6, 6-2, 10-5 before knocking out No. 606 Katerina Kramperova (CZE) and Illova Kremen(BLR) in straight sets, 7-5, 6-3.
In the semifinals, Slater and Vandewege beat No. 432 Maria-Fernanda Alves (BRA) and Jessica Moore (AUS) 7-5, 6-3 before winning the crown against No. 856 Nicole Gibbs (USA) and Shelby Rogers (USA), 6-3, 7-6.
After the victory, Slater reached a career-high in the WTA rankings in doubles at No.253.
A native of Scotland, Slater played under Coach Jennifer Hyde for two seasons (2005-2007). In 2007, Slater posted a record of 32-12, which tops the highest amount of doubles wins in a single season in school history.
“All of us back here in Tallahassee are so excited for Nicola,” Hyde said. “It was her first monumental win for her career. She’s been going at it very strongly the past couple of years and it seems as if she’s on the verge of a breakthrough. It’s always great to see one of our own do well on the tour and we continue to wish her nothing but the best.”
