Top seed Gauff was in a class of her own as she came out firing to dominate in the straight sets 6-0, 6-2 victory.
Fans applauded warmly for the American world number 7 as tennis returned to the outdoor courts at Stanley Street after days of rain forced games indoors.
Gauff, 18, controlled the match through strong serving, powerful groundstrokes and impressive movement around the court.
Kovinich called the trainer onto court in the second set to have her knee strapped. After a stellar tournament to progress to the later stages, she was barely in the contest today.
