ATLANTA, GA — August 3, 2025 - Team Atlanta walked into Sunday on top of the world. Less than 24 hours after knocking off Jacksonville in one of the most electric showdowns of the season, they sat alone in first place, had a home crowd on their side, and all the momentum a team could want.

But Team Tampa came in with something far more dangerous. Urgency.

At 1 and 4, their championship hopes were on life support. Lose, and the season was effectively over. Win, and the dream stayed alive.

They played like they knew exactly what was at stake.

From the very first serve, Head Coach Yelena Labat had her team locked in and laser-focused.

“The energy, and also I’ve been coaching a little bit more, I think,” Labat said. “Telling them what to do. I’m always thinking in advance, checking on the players, the game style, who will fit better.”

Labat’s preparation paid off immediately in Women’s Singles. Seone Mendez, undefeated this season, delivered another masterclass. Her early drop shots forced Tanya Sasnouskaya to chase, and Tampa jumped ahead 34 to 12 in the opening Bolt. Mendez stayed on the gas as the the Bolt went on, and Tampa closed out Women’s Singles with a commanding 78 to 49 lead.

“I’ve been telling them not to focus on the score,” Labat said. “They know they’re going to win. My goal when I talked to them was to get a lot of leads. So after the first Bolt, we were like 20 points ahead, I told them that’s not enough. Next Bolt, I want 10 more, and the next Bolt, I want 10 more.”

For Coach Marcelo Ferreira and Team Atlanta, the challenge was as much mental as physical.

“Tanya was a superstar yesterday,” Ferreira said. “By far the best tennis I’ve seen her play. She gave her all yesterday. She really did. But today, physically she was extremely worn out. There’s no way to deny it because she hasn’t played for that long the entire season.”

Ferreira admitted he tried to spark something in his star.

“I ended up being tough on her today because I wanted her to almost get angry at me and go out there chomping at the bit to prove me wrong,” he said. “But towards the end, she was already too tired and beaten up emotionally, and I should have been able to read that.”

Still, Atlanta didn’t fold.

Kevin King battled through injury to give his team life in Men’s Singles. Playing through clear discomfort in his knee, he led Atlanta to wins in all three Bolts. Atlanta outscored Tampa 67 to 60 in the segment, trimming the deficit to 138 to 116.

“Kevin, I mean, what do I have to say about a guy who had a major injury in February,” Ferreira said. “The guy sped up his recovery just because he wanted to be part of this. And he’s been playing with pain every single match.”
 

King’s resilience inspired the rest of the group.

“The heart this guy has is beyond words,” Ferreira added. “Someone who has become a huge leader on the team. When you see a teammate who is injured, giving his very, very best, always believing, the other teammates, they don’t care if they’re not playing. They just say OK, I’m so inspired by this guy that I just want to go out there and keep trying my best.”

With the lead cut to 22, and Atlanta’s strength in Doubles still in play, Ferreira felt the tide shifting.

“Today was very much a rollercoaster because we lost the girls by a lot,” he said. “Kevin was able to bridge the gap some. Girls Doubles pretty much maintained the gap, but boys doubles really bridged it. So I was tasting the win.”
Tampa had not won a Doubles segment all season. That changed in a big way Sunday.

Enter Quinn Gleason and Vicky Flores.

Gleason and Flores brought a new spark to Women’s Doubles, keeping Atlanta off balance and extending Tampa’s lead. 

The Atlanta men battled and won their doubles Bolt 31 to 23.The lead had been cut to only 15. 
But then came the final Bolt.

In Mixed Doubles, it was Flores and Noori Adam lighting up the scoreboard.

“That was our worst Bolt by far, and we’ve turned it into our best,” said Sam Frizelle. “We won Mixed by 20 points today. A lot of credit to Adam and Vicky. They really brought it.”

Flores, who joined the team in Week 4, has added fire on and off the court.

When asked, what was the biggest part of your game that worked for you today, she laughed and replied, “having a really good doubles partner in both Mixed and in Women’s Doubles.”

She went on to say, “honestly, every single time I go out to play, I just am trying to have so much energy and be really positive and go for my shots. You might as well play on your terms.”

When asked what changed for the team recently, she didn’t hesitate.

“I don’t really know because I wasn’t here before, so I’m going to say it’s my energy that’s maybe helping.” Her teammate Sam Frizzelli swiftly echoed the thought, saying, “She is 100% right. Team Tampa is undefeated since Vicky joined the team.”

She might be right. Since Flores joined, Team Tampa is undefeated. Add Gleason into the mix, and they look like a brand-new team.

Tampa closed Doubles 85 to 72, capped by a third Bolt outburst that put the Dual out of reach. Final score: Team Tampa 223, Team Atlanta 188.

Atlanta drops to 4 and 3. Tampa improves to 2 and 4 and heads into the final weekend with hope as they are hosting the final double header. If they are able to win both Duals all teams will be tied at 4-4 and the champion will be decided by percentage of Bolts won. If a winner is still undetermined, the decision is made by percentage of points won.

With all eyes now on the final weekend of the inaugural INTENNSE Season, Coach Labat said it best, “Just win it. That’s it. Just go get it.”

The final week of INTENNSE League action returns August 9th and 10th to the INTENNSE Arena, where championship hopes will be decided.

SATURDAY

Jacksonville vs. Challenge Team — 2 PM ET 
Atlanta vs. Tampa — 7 PM ET

SUNDAY

Jacksonville vs. Tampa — 7 PM ET

 All Duals will be streamed live on Twitch @INTENNSE and YouTube.
The full schedule is available here: INTENNSE Schedule
Limited tickets are available, offering multiple experiences. Further details can be found via the INTENNSE Tickets link