The Tribe women’s tennis team has continued their strong spring season, improving to a 5-0 record. Last weekend, the team defeated the University of Illinois, no. 1-ranked Georgia Tech and Purdue University.
p. Against the Fighting Illini, the team won all of its doubles matches before going on to win its first five singles matches. The doubles pair of senior Megan Moulton-Levy and sophomore Katarina Zoricic, the top-ranked team in the nation, beat out Emily Wang and Bryce Marable, 8-1. This marked the 13th straight success for the duo and improved their record to 22-1 for the year.
p. Three Tribe freshmen gained victories in the third, fourth and sixth singles positions. At number three singles, Ragini Acharya beat Marable in straight sets, 6-2 and 6-3, and earned her seventh win in a row. At the fourth singles position, Magdalena Bresson defeated Kristina Minor, 7-6, 7-5, gaining her 14th victory of the season. Finally, Carmen Pop defeated Wang, 6-3 and 7-5 in straight sets, improving her record during the 2006-2007 season to a perfect 11-0.
p. After defeating Illinois, the Tribe scored an upset over top-ranked Georgia Tech, 4-3. The Yellow Jackets came into the contest as the reigning USTA/ITA National Indoor Champion. The win also marked the first time the Tribe has defeated a no. 1 nationally ranked team since 1995.
p. “Obviously, we are excited about beating the no. 1 team in the country,” Tribe Head Coach Kevin Epley said. “With so many freshmen and sophomores in our line-up, it was a huge task, and I was impressed with the ladies’ ability to believe in themselves throughout the match … I can’t say enough about our team and the effort they put forth against one of the best teams in the country.”
p. The Tribe opened the match with the winning duo of Moulton-Levy and Zoricic. The two defeated Illinois’ Kristi Miller and Whitney McCray, 8-4. This marked the 14th straight victory for the girls and improved their record to an impressive 23-1. The College continued by defeating the Yellow Jackets at the no. 3 and no. 1 singles positions, and the no. 2 doubles position.
p. With the match score tied at 3-3, Katarina Zoricic, ranked no. 68 in singles, was under pressure to defeat no. 25 singles player and ACC Player of the Week Kirsten Flower. Despite severe cramps in her legs, Zoricic won the three-set match; 7-5, 5-7, 6-2, and improved her record to 15-5 overall in the process.
p. After the victory over Georgia Tech, the Tribe traveled to play no. 35 ranked Purdue. Once again, the College earned a win, as they topped the Boilermakers 5-2. The no. 1 doubles pair of Moulton-Levy and Zoricic won another match, pushing their winning streak to 15 straight. Moulton-Levy, Zoricic, Acharya and Lauren Sabacinski earned singles victories for the Tribe as well.