WASHINGTON KASTLES WIN MYLAN WTT EASTERN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP WITH 21-16 VICTORY OVER PHILADELPHIA FREEDOMS

Written by: Staff on 24th July 2014

WASHINGTON KASTLES WIN MYLAN WTT EASTERN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP WITH 21-16 VICTORY OVER PHILADELPHIA FREEDOMS

epa04191244 Swiss tennis player Martina Hingis in action during the doubles match with his teammate Sabine Lisicki against Russian Alla Kudryavtseva and Australian Anastasia Rodionova during the first round of the Mutua Madrid Open played at Caja Magica complex in Madrid, Spain, 04 May 2014. EPA/EMILIO NARANJO |

Washington Kastles Clinch Fourth Straight Mylan WTT Eastern Conference Championship

WASHINGTON (July 24, 2014) – The Washington Kastles claimed their fourth consecutive Mylan World TeamTennis Eastern Conference Championship on Thursday, defeating the Philadelphia Freedoms 21-16. Washington now seeks a record-tying fourth straight King Trophy and travels to the winner of the Mylan WTT Western Conference Championship between the San Diego Aviators and Springfield Lasers for Sunday’s Mylan WTT Finals.

Coming into the clash, the Kastles and Freedoms had split their season series 2-2, with the Freedoms prevailing just 24 hours ago in Philadelphia after saving six match points. The matchup lived up to its billing until an unfortunate incident changed the course of the encounter.

Bobby Reynolds led off for the Kastles in men’s singles, winning the first 10 points before Frank Dancevic dug in for the Freedoms. It was a fierce battle, but Reynolds drew on his home fans to push ahead for a 5-3 win.

In women’s singles, Martina Hingis looked to continue her dominance over Taylor Townsend, having won all three of their meetings during the regular season by a combined 15-3 margin. Townsend had other ideas, executing an aggressive game plan to secure a 5-2 victory and move the Freedoms ahead 8-7.

Hingis remained on the court to play mixed doubles with Leander Paes. The two were eager to wipe away the disappointment of blowing a five-game lead and six match points a night earlier and it showed, as they came out firing against Liezel Huber and Marcelo Melo. Hingis and Paes broke Huber’s serve and closed out a 5-2 win to give the Kastles a 12-10 lead at halftime.

Huber and Townsend hoped to keep the Freedoms close in women’s doubles versus Hingis and Anastasia Rodionova. In the first game, Huber was struck in the back of the head by a Townsend forehand. The Freedoms would win the game, but a few points later, Huber was unable to continue. Townsend continued to play one-on-two and held a game point on her serve, but Hingis and Rodionova finished off a 5-1 win.

Dancevic and Melo gave the Freedoms a glimmer of hope by defeating Reynolds and Paes 5-3 in men’s doubles to force Overtime. Reynolds, who announced he was retiring from professional tennis after the Mylan WTT season, fittingly sealed the victory for Washington.

The Mylan WTT Finals are scheduled for Sunday, July 27 at 5:00pm ET on the home court of the Western Conference Champion.

Mylan World TeamTennis – Results for Thursday, 7/24

(Home teams in capital letters)

Final Result:

MYLAN WTT EASTERN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP: WASHINGTON KASTLES def. Philadelphia Freedoms 21-16 (OT)

Men’s Singles – Bobby Reynolds (Kastles) def. Frank Dancevic (Freedoms) 5-3

Women’s Singles – Taylor Townsend (Freedoms) def. Martina Hingis (Kastles) 5-2

Mixed Doubles – Martina Hingis\Leander Paes (Kastles) def. Liezel Huber\Marcelo Melo (Freedoms) 5-2

Women’s Doubles – Martina Hingis\Anastasia Rodionova (Kastles) def. Liezel Huber\Taylor Townsend (Freedoms) 5-1

Men’s Doubles – Frank Dancevic\Marcelo Melo (Freedoms) def. Leander Paes\Bobby Reynolds (Kastles) 5-3

Overtime – Men’s Doubles – Leander Paes\Bobby Reynolds (Kastles) def. Frank Dancevic\Marcelo Melo (Freedoms) 1-0

Late Matches: 7/24/2014

MYLAN WTT WESTERN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP: Springfield Lasers @ SAN DIEGO AVIATORS, 7:00 PM PDT (Scheduled)

For live scoring and complete player / match statistics, please visit www.WTT.com

The 2014 Mylan WTT regular season runs July 6-23 with the top two teams from the Western and Eastern Conferences advancing to the Mylan WTT Conference Championships on Thursday, July 24. The conference champions will battle for the King Trophy at the 2014 Mylan WTT Finals at 5 p.m. ET on Sunday, July 27. The Finals will be played on the home court of the Western Conference Champion.

Topics: Leander Paes, Martina Hingis, Mylan World TeamTennis, Philadelphia Freedoms, Taylor Townsend, Tennis, Tennis News, Washington Kastles

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10sBalls_com says:

July 24, 2014 at 10:11 pm

@WashKastles WIN @WorldTeamTennis EASTERN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP WITH 21-16 VICTORY OVER @PhillyFreedoms- http://t.co/8l9P0dOOAn #tennis