MALIBU, Calif. – For the second time in one week, UCLA freshman Ena Shibahara has advanced to the championship final of an ITA national event. This time, the Bruin punched her ticket to the Oracle ITA Masters final with a straight-set win over UNC's Sara Daavettila on Saturday afternoon.
.@uclawtennis freshman Ena Shibahara:
— ITA Tennis (@ITA_Tennis) October 15, 2016
2 ITA national events ??
2 ITA national finals ??
Def. Daavettila (UNC) in #OracleITAMasters semis pic.twitter.com/UMYdctqFny
The freshman phenom dictated the pace from the start. In the first set, Shibahara broke Daavettila twice and saved six of seven break points. Registering a 6-3 win in the first set, the second-seeded Bruin carried this momentum into the second. Shibahara was two for two in break points won and tallied points on nine of 11 first serves. With her eye on the final, Shibahara sealed the deal with another 6-3 victory in the second set.
Shibahara defeats Daavettila (UNC) 6-3, 6-3 to advance to the #OracleITAMasters final!!! pic.twitter.com/D1aUIEkggg
— UCLA Women's Tennis (@uclawtennis) October 15, 2016
In Sunday's final, Shibahara will face the winner of the other semifinal matchup between top-seeded Luisa Stefani (Pepperdine) and fifth-seeded Hayley Carter (North Carolina).
Live stream of the matches will be available at FloTennis.com, while updated draws and daily recaps can be found at the ITA event page.
For updates, follow @UCLAWTennis and @ITA_Tennis on Twitter and use the hashtag #OracleITAMasters.