College of Charleston 7, Georgia Southern 0
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. - In its Southern Conference regular-season finale, the No. 71-ranked College of Charleston women's tennis team handed Georgia Southern a 7-0 shutout on Senior Day at the CofC Tennis Center at Patriots Point.
The Cougars (21-5, 9-1 SoCon) swept all of the singles and doubles matches against the Eagles (5-14, 2-8 SoCon) in a day honoring seniors Katie Lee and Caroline Newman.
CofC has clinched the No. 2 seed in the upcoming SoCon Tennis Championships to be held in the Lowcountry on April 19-22 and will face the winner of the No. 7 and No. 10 seeds in the women's quarterfinals to be played on Friday, April 20 at the Earle Tennis Center on the campus of The Citadel.
Lee clinched the fourth and deciding point of the match with a 7-6, 6-0 victory over Georgia Southern's Natalie Maffett at No. 6 singles. Newman also contributed to the sweep with a 6-2, 6-1 decision over Caitlin Kitchen at the No. 3 line. Both were greeted by their teammates and coaches with flowers and an assortment of gifts prior to the match.
In doubles play, the Cougars allowed only seven games across all three doubles matches highlighted by an 8-1 win by Newman and her younger sister, Christin, at the No. 3 position.
Furman 7, Western Carolina 0
CULLOWHEE, N.C. - The Furman women's tennis team concluded the 2012 road season with a 7-0 win over Western Carolina Friday afternoon at the Catamount Athletic Complex in Cullowhee, N.C.
The Paladins clinched the doubles point to open the match. Sophomore Margaret Boyette and freshman Kelly Sullivan defeated Ainhoa Iglesias Diaz and Megan McLinden, 8-4, in the top match, and juniors Olivia Maurice and Lauren Kline bested Karen Jimenez and Katie Barry, 8-1, at number two doubles. Freshman Kelsey Kinderknecht and senior Susan Bitetti won by default in the third-seeded slot.
Furman swept the doubles matches, as Boyette defeated Diaz, 6-2, 6-4, in the top match, and freshman Alex Moreno-Kaste topped McLinden, 6-2, 6-0, at number two singles. Sullivan recorded a 6-0, 7-6 (7-4) win over Jimenez in the third-seeded match, while Bitetti posted a 6-0, 6-0 win over Barry at number four. In the fifth singles contest, Kinderknecht defeated Sarah Walters, 6-0, 6-0, and Maurice won by default at number six.
East Carolina 6, Appalachian State 1
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. - In the team's final match of the regular season, Appalachian State University women's tennis fell to ETSU, 1-6, in non-conference action at Buddy Hartsell Tennis Center on Friday.
Despite the loss, the Mountaineers (12-11, 5-5 Southern Conference) still complete the season with the program's most wins since 2006 and most league victories since 2000. Meanwhile, ETSU (10-8, 6-2 Atlantic Sun) picks up its sixth win in its last seven matches.
In doubles, ETSU swept the action, combining an 8-0 win in the No. 1 position with an 8-6 victory at No. 3. Appalachian redshirt junior Gabriela Celi and senior Gisela Fernandez forced a tiebreaker with an 8-8 showing at No. 2, but the Buccaneer pair stole the match 9-8(7-4).
Appalachian's only point of the match came from junior Jennifer Ansari, who collected herself after a first-set loss to allow only four games in the latter two of a three-set victory in the No. 2 slot, winning 2-6, 6-1, 6-3.
The top Mountaineer, Ellie Linsell, won her opening set against regionally-ranked No. 11 Paula Jamie, but the Buccaneer rallied to win the second set. The combatants split the final group of games, but Jamie tore through the final tiebreaker for the 2-6, 6-2, 7-6(7-0) ETSU win.
Celi won her first set at No. 3 but was unable to hang on after nearly stealing the match in the second set. The deflated Mountaineer was unable to put multiple games on the board in the final set, as her Buccaneer foe won 2-6, 7-6(7-4), 6-1.
In her final regular season match, Appalachian senior Kim-Lea Dinh was the fourth App to win an opening singles set, taking the first by a slim margin before her ETSU opponent rebounded to score a 6-7, 6-2, 6-3 win.
The Mountaineers redirect their attention back to the Southern Conference, as Appalachian State prepares for the 2012 Southern Conference Tournament, hosted by College of Charleston and The Citadel, April 19-22. ASU will be slotted as the No. 6 or No. 7 seed, depending on the outcome of Saturday's match between Samford and Chattanooga.
UNC Wilmington 4, UNCG 3
WILMINGTON, N.C. - No. 74 UNCG saw its 10-match winning streak come to an end with a 4-3 loss at UNCW at the UNCW Tennis Complex on Friday.
The Seahawks (14-6), who have been ranked as high as No. 63 this season, clinched the match in a third-set tiebreaker at No. 3 singles to pull out the dramatic win. Dilara Yurtkuran turned in impressive rally to give UNCG a chance at the victory, overcoming a 6-1 loss in the first set to take a 7-5 win in the second. UNCW's Angie Sekely was not to be denied, however, as she claimed the tiebreaker 10-8 for the 7-6 win in the third set.
The match started out well for the Spartans (15-5), who won the doubles point for the 18th straight match. Devon Sutherland and Alex Whitehead topped Sekely and Olga Blank at No. 2, 8-4, but the Seahawks (14-6) countered with a win at No. 3, as Miller Hales and Kelly Cameron topped Kayla Gammie and Annette Rios, 8-4. The loss snapped the Spartan duo's 13-match winning streak.
UNCG clinched the point at No. 1, where Yurtkuran and Niltooli Wilkins, playing together for the first time ever, pulled out a 9-7 win over Christina Lee and Alyssa Ritchie.
The Seahawks rallied in singles play. Blank got things going with a 6-1, 6-1 win over Whitehead at No. 2, and Ritchie put UNCW ahead with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Rios at No. 4.
Wilkins pulled UNCG even with her 6-2, 6-3 win over Lee at the top of the lineup, picking up her 18th straight win to move to 28-6 on the season. She needs just one more win the match the school record set by Alejandra Guerra in 2009.
Sutherland put the Spartans back on top with a win at No. 6, cruising past Casey Dashiell, 6-0, 6-4, but UNCW's Christina Riley tied the match at No. 5, downing freshman Stephanie Falcon 6-2, 6-3 as Falcon lost consecutive matches for the just the second time this season.
Friday's loss was the first for the Spartans in more than a month. UNCG's previous loss was a 4-3 setback at Charleston Southern on March 10.
UNCG closes out the regular season with its final Southern Conference contest Sunday at Western Carolina. The Spartans, who are 9-0 in league play and are assured of at least a share of the SoCon regular-season title, can clinch their first-ever outright title with a win. The match is set for 1 p.m. in Cullowhee, N.C.