Davidson 4, UNCG 3
DAVIDSON, N.C. — Looking to send their four seniors off on a winning note in their last home match, the Davidson women’s tennis team fell just short as they dropped a 4-3 decision at home on Senior Day to UNCG Saturday afternoon in Southern Conference play at the Covington Tennis Courts.
The Wildcats wrapped up their regular season with a 7-17 record and finished 2-7 in SoCon play.
Playing their final home matches were Brites Moniz-Soares, Nisha Crouser, Tamara Hill and Elise Held. Moniz-Soares was the lone senior to take home a win on the afternoon.
Davidson nearly took the doubles point with it coming down to the No. 2 team of Nisha Crouser and Jenna Brunner. The duo battled it out until the end, falling 8-7 to give the Spartans (8-12, 5-4 SoCon) the early 1-0 lead.
Moniz-Soares and Elaina Cummer won their 11th doubles match together with a solid 8-2 win at No. 1 doubles.
The ‘Cats came back to get all three of their team points in singles, but UNCG was able to get wins at No. 3, 5 and 6 to secure the win. Moving to a team-best 13-10 was Moniz-Soares at No. 1 as she won a three-setter. The senior came back from dropping a 6-3 decision to win 6-2 and 6-4 in the next two sets.
Cummer hit the double-digit mark in wins on the season with her 10th by scoring a third-set super tie-breaker. She won her first set 7-6, but fell 6-3 to force the last set. Since the team match was decided, she played at super tie-breaker vs. Kayla Gammie and won 10-6 to improve to 10-14 on the season.
Scoring the ‘Cats’ last point was freshman Jenna Brunner at No. 4. She rattled off a 6-0, 7-5 win to improve to 11-10 on the season.
In her final home match, Hill dropped a 6-2, 6-4 decision at No. 5 to Devon Sutherland. Hill has played a career-high 17 singles matches this year.
Elon 7, Western Carolina 0
ELON, N.C. – The Elon University women's tennis team closed the regular season in impressive fashion on Saturday, April 12, following a 7-0 sweep of Western Carolina at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center.
Elon improves to 12-8 (6-3 Southern Conference) with the win on Senior Day.
The Phoenix started off strong in doubles, sweeping all three matches versus the Catamounts to take a 1-0 lead. Jordan Johnston and Barbora Lazarova claimed an 8-1 win at No. 1 over Stacia Kissell and Shannon Bettiol, while Bryn Khoury and Taylor Casey topped Sara Ruiz Pajares and Erin Maguire, 8-1, as well. Frida Jansaker and Maria Camara Ruiz secured the doubles sweep with an 8-0 decision over WCU's Nicole Nielly and Megan McLinden.
Khoury pushed the maroon and gold out to a 2-0 lead after quickly winning at No. 3 singles, 6-0, 6-0, against Western's McLinden. Minutes later Jansaker followed it up minutes later with a 6-0, 6-1, win at No. 2 versus Bettiol to give Elon a 3-0 lead.
Lazarova clinched it for the Phoenix at No. 4 singles, topping Ruiz Pajares in straight sets, 6-3, 6-2, to make it a 5-0 match.
Camara Ruiz pushed Elon out to a 5-0 lead at No. 5 with a 6-1, 6-2, win versus Nielly, while rookie Tolley Rice registered a 6-2, 6-3, win at No. 6 to make it a 6-0 match.
Johnston closed out the win at No. 1 for the Phoenix, topping Kissell at 6-4, 7-6 (7-4), to complete the sweep.
Samford 4, Chattanooga 3
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Amidst its best season in school history, the Samford University women’s tennis team continued to rewrite the record book Saturday as the Bulldogs defeated the Chattanooga Mocs, 4-3, to complete the 2014 regular season with an unblemished 13-0 mark at the Samford Tennis Center.
With Saturday’s marathon victory, Samford (18-2, 8-1 Socon) extended its winning streak to six-consecutive matches and secured the No. 2 seed in next week’s SoCon Tournament.
In Saturday’s win over Chattanooga (17-4, 7-2 SoCon), Samford earned the all-important doubles point and garnered an early 1-0 lead over the Mocs.
The Bulldogs’ doubles tandem comprised of Kristin Lewis and Emily Mallory, as well as their pairing of Jessica Northcutt and Stephanie N’tcha both registered 8-3 victories on courts No. 1 and No. 3, respectively. Chattanooga won the match on court No. 2 after Samford secured the doubles point.
In singles play, four of the six matches came down to a third set.
Samford’s N’tcha tallied a straight-set triumph on court No. 1, 6-4, 6-1, to complete the regular season with a brilliant 15-4 singles record, while the Mocs’ Kelsey Coots proved to be victorious on court No. 4.
With the Bulldogs leading the match, 2-1, Chattanooga then bounced back to record a pair of three-set wins on courts No. 2 and No. 6.
Despite the Mocs’ late resurgence, Samford never lost sight of its ultimate goal and posted thrilling three-set triumphs from Ebada on court No. 3 and Mallory on court No. 5.
Ebada, the Bulldogs’ near-perfect junior from Cairo, Egypt, rallied for a 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 victory over Alexa Flynn in the No. 3 singles contest, while Mallory dug deep to post a come-from-behind 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-2 win over Chattanooga’s Claire Mulyadi on court No. 5. With their wins, Ebada improved to 18-1 this season and Mallory moved to 15-2.
During Saturday’s match, the Bulldogs honored and thanked seniors Lewis and Mallory for their hard work and dedication. Both student-athletes have played major roles in Samford’s success over the last five seasons and will go down in school lore as two of the top competitors in history.
Since stepping foot on campus, these Bulldogs have helped guide their team to a brilliant 77-34 overall record, including a remarkable 33-15 mark against SoCon opponents. Additionally, both players have already earned their bachelor degrees and will graduate with their master’s in business administration next month.
Additionally on Saturday, Samford extended its home winning streak to 15-consecutive matches, dating all the way back to March 23, 2013.