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Semifinals set for ITA Division III National Women's Team Indoor
Championship
Three of the Top Four Seeds Advance; Emory, Chicago Look for Finals
Repeat
ST. PETER, Minn. - Producing the same first round results as its men's
counterpart, the top three seeds all advanced as Emory, U. of Chicago
and Denison each enter tomorrow's semifinals of the Intercollegiate
Tennis Association (ITA) Division III National Women's Team Indoor
Championship for the second-straight year.
No. 5 Carnegie Mellon provided the first round's only upset, exacting
revenge on host Gustavus Adolphus with a 7-2 victory after dropping a
match in last year's event. The upset by Carnegie was also a duplication
of the men's tournament from just two weeks ago in which Coach Andrew
Girard's team was also able to knock off the tournament's fourth seed as
the only first-round upset.
The third-annual event returned to Gustavus Adolphus after hosting the
inaugural championship just two years ago.
ITA Division III National Men's Team Indoor Championship: First Round
#1 Emory 8, #8 DePauw 1
#5 Carnegie Mellon 7, #4 Gustavus Adolphus 2
#3 Denison 6, #6 Washington & Lee 3
#2 U. of Chicago 8, #7 Chapman 1
#1 EMORY: Top-seeded Emory looks primed to defend their title, with a
possible rematch of last year's final waiting in the wings as the Eagles
won the ITA Indoor Championship last season, defeating the University of
Chicago 6-3 in the title match. But first, they must face fifth-seeded
Carnegie Mellon in a rematch from 2009, the first year of the annual
tournament, in which Emory advanced to the championship match before
losing to Carnegie, 6-3.
After claiming two quick doubles points at No. 2 and No. 3 positions,
Emory's Jordan Wylie and Gabrielle Clark won three straight games in
overcoming a 6-7 deficit to capture a 9-7 victory putting the Eagles up
3-0 early. From that point forward, EU never looked back, winning the
next 5 singles matches, all but one in straight sets, to push the lead
to an insurmountable 8-0 lead.
However, that did not stop the ladies from DePauw from giving it all
they had. With just one match still on court and down big, Elizabeth
Young fought her way to a 7-5, 6-4 win over Taylor Brandt to avoid the
shutout for the Tigers.
First Round Matchup: No. 1 Emory 8, No. 8 DePauw 1
Semifinal Matchup: No. 1 Emory vs. No. 5 Carnegie Mellon
Doubles
1. Wylie/Clark (EU) def. Arita/Gebert (DU), 9-7
2. McManigle/Dawson (EU) def. Wilks/Whitlach (DU), 8-2
3. Padmanabhan/Kelly (EU) def. Young/Crowley (DU), 8-3
Order of Finish: 2, 3, 1
Singles
1. Gabrielle Clark (EU) def. Janelle Arita (DU), 6-2, 6-2
2. Jordan Wylie (EU) def. Kelly Gebert (DU), 6-0, 6-2
3. Lorne McManigle (EU) def. Tricia Wilks (DU), 6-2, 4-6, 1-0 [10]
4. Zahra Dawson (EU) def. Meg Crowley (DU), 6-2, 6-2
5. Mavalik Padmanabhan (EU) def. Katie Regan (DU), 6-2, 6-0
6. Elizabeth Young (DU) def. Taylor Brandt (EU), 7-5, 6-4
Order of Finish: 2, 1, 3, 4, 5, 6
#2 U. of CHICAGO: The University of Chicago women quickly showed their
opponent, Chapman, who is making their first appearance in the event,
that they have been here before. The Maroons have their sights set on
returning to the final, only this time they are seeking a championship
victory, after dropping a tough 6-3 loss to Emory in 2010.
U of C, who is perennially one of the most competitive squads in doubles
play, put on a clinic, capturing all three doubles points 8-3, 8-2, and
8-1 respectively. The chance for the Panthers to rally back would hinge
on the No.1 singles, which matched up two former NCAA Champions in Liz
Lewis (Chapman) and Kendra Higgins (Chicago). In the first set, Lewis
appeared to have revenge after dropping the doubles point earlier, but
Higgins gained her composure and toughed out a clutch tiebreaking second
set. Using the momentum, Higgins was able to outlast Lewis in the third
set, putting the Maroons up 6-0 and capturing the match simultaneously
with No. 2 singles, where Carmen Vaca Guzman nearly posted a shutout,
dropping just one game.
Determined not to be shutout by the tournament's second-seed, Chapman's
Genna Ford was able to post a third-set win, giving the Panthers their
solo point and giving some momentum for their consolation match
tomorrow.
First Round Matchup: No. 2 U. of Chicago 8, No. 7 Chapman 1
Semifinal Matchup: No. 2 U. of Chicago vs. No. 3 Denison
Doubles
1. Higgins/Hu, (CHI) def. Lewis/Fox, (CHAP), 8-3
2. Li/Vaca Guzman (CHI) def. Boyer/Ford (CHAP), 8-2
3. Krishnan/Kung (CHI) def.Scholler/Sirois (CHAP), 8-1
Order of Finish: 3, 1, 2
Singles
1. Kendra Higgins (CHI) def. Liz Lewis (CHAP), 2-6, 7-6 [5], 1-0 [6]
2. Jennifer Kung (CHI) def. Kelley Fox (CHAP), 6-0, 6-0
3. Carmen Vaca Guzman (CHI) def. Candace Scholler (CHAP), 6-0, 6-1
4. Linden Li (CHI) def. Kelley Klebenow (CHAP), 6-1, 7-5
5. Chrissy Hu (CHI) def. Melissa Boyer (CHAP), 6-1, 6-1
6. Genna Ford (CHAP) def. Aswini Krishnan (CHI), 6-3, 1-6, 1-0 [3]
Order of Finish: 3, 2, 1, 5, 4, 6
#3 DENISON: The Big Red's victory moves them on to the semifinals where
they will take on the University of Chicago, last year's runner-ups.
Denison took two of three doubles points thanks to an 8-2 win by Kristin
Cobband Erin Chadwell and No. 1 doubles and an 8-4 win by freshman
Kelsey Geppnerand senior Sarah Shortat No. 3 doubles.
In singles play, Chadwell picked up Denison's third point of the match
with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Washington & Lee's Lauren Lukas. At third
singles, Short defeated Jen Snyder 7-5, 6-2 for the point and Cobb
locked up the clinching point with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Ellen Yeatman.
The Generals were able to claim one doubles and two singles victories on
the day, however. The No. 2 duo of juniors Snyder and Yeatman edged out
Alex Marcell and Jane Lent, 9-7. Trelsie Sadler posted the second point
for W&L at No. 4 singles over Marcell, 6-2, 6-2, while No. 6 Sallie
Griffin proved victorious over Kate Westenberger, 6-4, 6-1 to push the
Generals' final point tally to three.
First Round Matchup: No. 3 Denison 6, No. 6 Washington & Lee 3
Semifinal Matchup: No. 3 Denison vs. No. 2 U. of Chicago
Doubles
1. Cobb/Chadwell (DEN) def. Sadler/Lukas (W&L), 8-2
2. Snyder/Yeatman (W&L) def. Marcell/Lent (DEN), 9-7
3. Geppner/Short (DEN) def. Mixson/Griffin (W&L), 8-4
Order of Finish: 3, 1, 2
Singles
1. Kristin Cobb (DEN) def. Ellen Yeatman (W&L), 6-2, 6-4
2. Erin Chadwell (DEN) def. Lauren Lukas (W&L), 6-2, 6-3
3. Sarah Short (DEN) def. Jen Snyder (W&L), 7-5, 6-2
4. Trelsie Sadler (W&L) def. Alex Marcell (DEN), 6-2, 6-2
5. Kelsey Geppner (DEN) def. Chelsea Mixson (W&L), 6-0, 6-1
6. Sallie Griffin (W&L) def. Kate Westenberger (DEN), 6-4, 6-1
Order of Finish: 2, 3, 1, 4, 5, 6
#5 CARNEGIE MELLON: Though Carnegie Mellon came into the match as the
lower seed, the Tartans look primed to follow up on their 2009
performance, in which they came in as the No. 6 seed but left with the
inaugural ITA Division III Women's Team Indoor national title.
Carnegie's first opponent would be fourth-seeded Gustavus Adolphus, who
are not only serving as tournament host but is also home to one of
Division III's most passionate college tennis fans. However, it might be
CMU who is most appreciative of the Swanson Tennis Center, as the their
2009 title also came on the home courts of their soon-to-be opponents.
At No. 1 doubles, the Chen and Chin duo (Laura and Courtney) made quick
work of the home team with an 8-3 victory. Positions two and three
though, would battle back-and-forth before Carnegie pulled away with
both points, needing to get nine games to victory on both courts. The
tough losses surely took some of the wind out of the Gusties' sails, as
singles Nos. 1-3 took court. Chen and Chin carried their success into
singles grabbing two more points to seal the deal for the Tartans early.
However, Gustavus' Marianne Barau made sure no shutout would dangle in
the picture by nearly notching a shutout at No. 3 singles, giving GAC
their first point, despite still trailing 5-1. Give the host school
credit for sticking around even after dropping the next two points,
making it 7-1 Tartans. The Gusties' Mary Roop capitalized on the
opportunity, giving the home team the final point of the night at No. 6
singles with a 6-1, 7-5 win.
First Round Matchup: No. 5 Carnegie Mellon 7, No. 4 Gustavus Adolphus 2
Semifinal Matchup: No. 5 Carnegie Mellon vs. No. 1 Emory
Doubles
1. Chen/Chin (CMU) def. Barau/Gaard (GAC), 8-3
2. Chui/Tapak (CMU) def. Born/Frank (GAC), 9-7
3. Herrick/Tam (CMU) def. Erickson/Bardenwerper (GAC), 9-8 [6]
Order of Finish: 1, 2, 3
Singles
1. Laura Chen (CMU) def. Sam Frank (GAC), 6-1, 6-0
2. Courtney Chin (CMU) vs. Megan Gaard (GAC), 3-6, 6-3, 6-3
3. Marianne Barau (GAC) def. Alexandra Tapak (CMU), 6-0, 6-3
4. Cze-Je Tam (CMU) def. Alex Eirckson (GAC), 6-3, 6-4
5. Jennifer Chui (CMU) def. Julie Bardenwerper (GAC), 7-5, 6-2
6. Mary Roop (GAC) def. Madison Rabson (CMU), 6-1, 7-5
Order of Finish: 1, 3, 2, 4, 5, 6
Saturday's schedule has the losers of Friday's matches playing in
consolation matches beginning at 8:30 a.m., while the winners will play
in semifinal matches beginning at 2:00 p.m. The final Consolation rounds
are slated to start at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday. The third place and
championship matches will begin at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday morning.
* All times are CT
