Katie Volynets hangs on, reaches 1st WTA semifinal at Austin

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Katie Volynets has reached her first WTA semifinal by beating reigning NCAA singles champion Peyton Stearns 7-5, 6-3 in a matchup between a pair of 21-year-old Americans at the ATX Open in Austin, Texas. Volynets is a Californian who is ranked 92nd. She went ahead 4-0 in the opening set Friday, then found herself at 5-all. But she managed to run off seven games in a row from there to claim that set and lead 5-0 in the second. Volynets twice got broken while serving for the victory and needed four match points to close things out.