Appalachian State 7, UNC Asheville 0
BOONE, N.C. - Following Tuesday's narrow 4-3 win over Elon, Appalachian State University won more comfortably, 7-0, over non-conference opponent UNC Asheville at Yonahlossee Racquet Club on Wednesday. Appalachian State (6-3, 1-0 SoCon) retains an unbeaten 5-0 mark at home, while UNCA (4-8, 0-1 Big South) suffers its second-straight shutout.
The victory also marks Appalachian's third home sweep of the season. In five matches, the Black and Gold have outscored opponents 30-5 in team points in Boone.
The match began with Appalachian's No. 3 doubles pair of senior Blakeley Bean and sophomore Jessica Thaggard jumping out to a 4-1 lead before closing out the match in an impressive 8-2 fashion.
At No. 2 doubles, ASU seniors Gisela Fernandez and Gabriela Celi broke their opponents' serve in the first game of the match. Leading 5-4, the Mounataineers won three-straight games to close out an 8-4 victory to clinch the doubles point.
In the top doubles match, Appalachian State juniors Ellie Linsell and Jennifer Ansari found themselves down a pair of break points, 2-5, but rallied to win four straight games to take a 6-5 lead. With momentum behind them, the ASU duo calmly held serve and used an 8-6 win to sweep the doubles.
In singles action, Ansari made short work of her No. 2 opponent, cruising to a 6-1 win in the first set. The Mountaineer broke out of a 3-3 tie midway through her latter set and wasted no time picking up the 6-1, 6-4 victory to extend ASU's lead to 2-0.
At No. 3 singles, Celi had trouble getting past her Bulldog foe in the opening set, but after the pair split 11 games on serve, the first break fell in Celi's favor for a 7-5 set. In her second set, Celi piled on the pressure and notched a 7-5, 6-1 win.
Appalachian's top singles player, Linsell, pulled out a 6-3 first set, but UNCA's Zoe Hamel rebutted with a 6-3 win of her own. In the decisive set, Hamel led 5-4, serving for the match, but Linsell recovered and won three straight games, including two breaks, to clinch a 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 win and secure an insurmountable 4-0 lead for ASU.
Freshman Gabby Gabriel earned her third-straight two-set victory in her No. 5 match. She broke open a 4-0 lead to start the opening set and preserved a 6-1 win. Though she dropped the opening game of the second set, Gabriel dominate in six-consecutive games, earning a 6-1, 6-1 win.
No. 4 singles saw Appalachian's Thaggard lose serve in the opening game, but the App broke back and held to break again in the final game of a 6-4 set. Her Bulldog opponent stole a 3-0 lead in the second set, but Thaggard broke twice and won four straight for a 4-3 advantage, and she tallied a final break point to seal the match, 6-4, 6-4.
In the day's final match on the courts, Appalachian's Fernandez competed in her first singles match of the season. After ASU took the first two games, UNCA's Amie Cloer leveled the match at 2-2. Fernandez broke later in the set and took it, 6-4. In the second set, Fernandez stole two breaks, leaping out to a 3-0 lead, and she had no trouble serving out the match for a 6-4, 6-2 win.
The Mountaineers now begin a six-match road trip, extending across four states. This weekend, Appalachian travels to North Carolina Central on Saturday at 2 p.m. before making a stop at College of Charleston on Sunday at 10 a.m.
UNCG 5, Coastal Carolina 2
CONWAY, S.C. - UNCG picked up a trio of three-set singles wins en route to handing Coastal Carolina its first loss of the season Wednesday, 5-2, at the Billy Nichols Tennis Center.
UNCG (5-3), which picked up its fifth win in its last six matches, got off to the early 1-0 lead by taking the doubles point.
Lucy Dougherty and Niltooli Wilkins dominated Miki Bunea and Diana Mortlock at No. 1, rolling to the easy 8-0 win. Annette Rios and Kayla Gammie clinched the point at No. 3, topping Kourtney Kowal and Maria Hesketh by an 8-4 count.
Mikaela Kristofersson and Katie Fosnacht made sure CCU (6-1) avoided the doubles sweep with an 8-5 win over Alex Whitehead and Devon Sutherland at No. 2.
In singles play, Whitehead made it a 2-0 UNCG lead with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Kristofersson at No. 3. Mortlock then put the Chanticleers on the board with a 7-6 (7-5), 6-1 win over Dilara Yurtkuran at No. 2.
Kowal downed Dougherty at No. 5 by a 7-5, 6-2 score to even the match at 2, but it was all Spartans from there.
Rios picked up a 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 win over Fosnacht at No. 4 to put UNCG ahead for good, and freshman Stephanie Falcon clinched the match with a 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 win over Hesketh at No. 6.
Wilkins wrapped up the day with a 7-5, 6-2, 6-4 win over Bunea at No. 1 to move to 7-1 this spring.
UNCG wraps up its Spring Break road swing at Charleston Southern on Saturday at 10 a.m.
UC Irvine 4, Furman 3
IRVINE, Calif. - Paladin sophomore Amanda Murray came from behind with a second-set win at number six singles, but the effort proved too little as Ali Facey took the match, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 to lead UC Irvine to a 4-3 win over Furman in women's tennis action at the Anteater Tennis Stadium Wednesday.
The Paladins opened the match by winning two out of three doubles matches to clinch the doubles point. Junior Lauren Kline and freshman Alex Moreno-Kaste defeated Courtney Byron and Hannah Holladay, 8-6, at number one doubles, then Anteaters Franziska Goettschin and Kristina Smith teamed up for an 8-5 win over sophomores Margaret Boyette and Katherine Oudin at number two to tie the match. The duo of Murray and junior Michele Stanford fought through a close match at number three, defeating Ali Facey and Kat Facey, 9-8(5) to claim the point for Furman.
The Anteaters came out strong early in the singles matches, as Kat Facey defeated Moreno-Kaste, 6-3, 6-2, at number four to tie the match at 1-apiece. Byron posted a 6-1, 6-2 win over Stanford in the second singles contest, then Smith beat Kline, 6-1, 6-4, in the top singles match-up, giving UC Irvine a 3-1 team lead.
Furman roared back, tying the match at 3-all as Boyette defeated Goettschin, 6-3, 6-2, at number four, and Oudin handed Marivick Mamiit a 6-2, 6-4 loss at number five singles to set up the decisive match at number six.
The Paladins (3-6) will play at Cal State Northridge Friday at 5 p.m.