ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. – The #37 Brandeis women's tennis team bounced back from a marathon match yesterday to defeat the University of Rochester, 4-2, in the seventh-place match at the 2026 University Athletic Association championships at Sanlando Park in Florida.

TEAM RECORDS

• Brandeis: 11-9, ranked #37 in Division III by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association.
• Rochester: 8-12.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Judges rolled to the doubles point, with junior Chahana Budhbhatti (Ahmedabad, India/Aavishkar School) and first-year Avani Chitale (Ahmedabad, India/Cosmos Castle International School) winning 6-0 to kick things off.
• Brandeis's #1 tandem of senior Rebecca Suarez (New York, N.Y./International Virtual Learning Academy) and junior Mandy Reyes (Manila, Philippines/Laurel Hill School) winning, 6-2, to bring their season record to 17-4 on the year, 14-2 in dual matches.
• First-year Milana Sofizade (Sarasota, Fla./IMG Academy) put the Judges ahead, 2-0, with a 6-2, 6-2, win at #5.
• Rochester bounced back with a win at #6, and at #2, where Budhbhatti retired while trailing, 4-6, 2-2, a day after playing the longest match of the tournament.
• The middle of the Brandeis order completed the win, with Chitale putting the Judges back on top, 6-1, 6-4, at #3, and senior Nancy Zhang (Shanghai, China/Shanghai International Division) completed the victory at #4, 7-5, 6-1, in her final collegiate match.
• Reyes was a game from winning her match, leading 6-3, 5-2, when Zhang completed the win.

UP NEXT

• The Judges' regular season is complete.
• Suarez and Reyes, who were ranked #7 in Division III and #2 in the Northeast Region in the latest ITA rankings, are in line for selection to the NCAA DIII Doubles Championships in May.