Blue Demons Fall 6-1 to Grand Canyon

Monday, January 19

Phoenix, AZ

12:00 PM

DePaul University

Grand Canyon

1/19/2026 3:46:00 PM | WOMEN'S TENNIS

DePaul at GCU Box Score

Stula grabs lone DePaul point in singles victory

PHOENIX – DePaul women's tennis lost 6-1 to host Grand Canyon on Monday afternoon.

No. 3 doubles, Helin Alvarez and Roberta Sechi fell to the Lopes' Amalia Sucia and Peyton Duckett, 6-2, giving Grand Canyon the doubles set advantage. Blue Demon pair Hannah Smith and Clara Nilsson were overmatched on court one, losing 3-6 to allow the Lopes to capture the doubles point.

Grand Canyon picked up the second point of the game with a 6-2, 6-1 singles win over Alvarez on court six.

Nilsson fell 2-6, 3-6 in slot three, moving the Lopes one step closer to securing the match.

Smith battled on court two and held an early 6-2 lead after the first set. The senior could not maintain the same performance, losing 0-6, 1-6 in the final two frames for a Grand Canyon match victory.

No. 4 singles Yasemin Pehlivan took her match to three sets as well. Pehlivan led 6-2 after set one, but dropped sets two and three 2-6, 2-6.

Sechi narrowly fell on court five. The Sassari, Italy native led 7-5 after a back-and-forth first set. Sechi's play lulled in set two after a 1-6 defeat, setting up a tiebreaking frame. In a competitive match, Sechi lost 6-7 for the Lopes' sixth point of the day.

Junior Sasha Stula was a bright spot for the Blue Demons this afternoon. Stula edged Karina Hofbauer of Grand Canyon 7-6 in the first set. The DePaul veteran fell 3-6 in the second but used her experience to rebound quickly in the third for a 6-3 set victory and a match win. Stula is 2-0 in singles on the young season after playing to a 10-6 clip during tournament action in the fall.

Match Score
Grand Canyon 6, DePaul 1
January 19, 2026
GCU Tennis Facility
Phoenix, Ariz.

Doubles
Dania Deaifi/Bella Crossman (GCU) def. Hannah Smith/Clara Nilsson (DPU), 6-3
Sasha Stula/Yasemin Pehlivan (DPU) vs. Karina Hofbauer/Hams Metwally (GCU), 4-3 (uf.)
Amalia Sucia/Peyton Duckett (GCU) def. Roberta Sechi/Helin Alvarez (DPU), 6-2

Singles
Sasha Stula (DPU) def. Karina Hofbauer (GCU), 7-6, 3-6, 6-3
Bella Crossman (GCU) def. Hannah Smith (DPU), 2-6, 6-0, 6-1
Hams Metwally (GCU) def. Clara Nilsson (DPU), 6-2, 6-3
Dania Deaifi (GCU) def. Yasemin Pehlivan (DPU), 2-6, 6-2, 6-2
Peyton Duckett (GCU) def. Roberta Sechi (DPU) def. 5-7, 6-1, 7-6
Sydney Schnell (GCU) def. Helin Alvarez (DPU), 6-2, 6-1

Notes
DePaul 0-2
Grand Canyon 1-2
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (6,3,2,4,5,1)

UP NEXT
The Blue Demons travel to the Hoosier state next weekend for a pair of contests. First serve against Kennesaw State is Saturday, Jan. 24 at 10 a.m. CT. DePaul battles Indiana on Sunday, Jan. 25 at 11 a.m. CT.

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