May 12, 2006
CORAL GABLES, <?xml:namespace prefix=”st1″ ns=”urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags”?>Fla.– After enduring a 90-minute rain delay, 39th ranked Florida International defeated 31st ranked Iowa, 4-1, in the opening match of the 2006 NCAA Women’s Tennis Coral Gables Regional at the Neil Schiff Tennis Center on the campus of the University of Miami. <?xml:namespace prefix=”o” ns=”urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office”?>
FIU (21-5) advances to Saturday’s 3 p.m. second-round match against the winner of today’s Miami/Boston University match. The winner of Saturday’s match advances to the NCAA Championship Round of 16, May 18-22, in Stanford, Calif.
FIU opened the match by capturing the doubles point with wins at the No.1 and No.3 doubles positions. At court No. 1, FIU’s 20th ranked Nikkita Fountain/Paula Zabala pair defeated Iowa’s 60th ranked Megan Racette/Jacqueline Lee tandem, 8-6. The Golden Panthers clinched the point when Courtney Jonson and Bruna Discordia paired up to defeat Krissy Dowlin and Milica Veselinovic, 8-4 at the No. 6 slot.
The Hawkeyes (18-6) tied the score at one-all when Veselinovic (Sombor, Serbia), a sophomore who is ranked 85th nationally, claimed a 6-1, 6-1 straight-set victory over junior Shilla D’Armas (Bradenton, Fla.) at the No. 3 position.
FIU quickly took a 3-1 match lead with wins at No. 5 and No. 4 singles. Fountain, a junior Nassau, Bahamas native, defeated freshman Krissy Dowlin (Panure, Australia) 6-3, 6-2 at the No. 5 position. At court No. 4, sophomore Marijana Cutuk (Split, Croatia) upended Lee, a sophomore out of Canton, Ohio, 6-3, 6-2.
Not long after, FIU sophomore Egle Petraukaite (Vilnius, Lithuania) downed junior Hillary Mintz (Bensalem, Penn.) in straight-sets, 7-5, 6-1 to clinch the victory for FIU.
NCAA Division I Women’s Tennis Championships – First Round
Neil SchiffTennisCenter – Coral Gables, Fla.
#31 Iowa vs. #39 FIU
May 12, 2006
FIU 4, Iowa 1
Singles
1. #79 Paula Zabala (FIU) vs. #39 Megan Racette (IOWA) 5-7, 5-4, unfinished
2. Egle Petraukaite (FIU) def. Hillary Mintz (IOWA) 7-5, 6-1
3. #85 Milica Veselinovic (IOWA) def. Shilla D’Armas (FIU) 6-1, 6-1
4. Marijana Cutuk (FIU) def. Jacqueline Lee (IOWA) 6-2, 6-3
5. Nikkita Fountain (FIU) def. Krissy Dowlin (IOWA) 6-3, 6-2
6. Desanka Jovanovic (FIU) vs. Merel Beelen (IOWA) 6-0, 2-6, 3-4 unfinished
Doubles
1. #20 Paula Zabala/Nikkita Fountain (FIU) def. #60 Megan Racette/Jacqueline Lee (IOWA) 8-6
2. Egle Petraukaite/Shilla D’Armas (FIU) vs. Hillary Mintz/Kayla Berry (IOWA) 7-7, unfinished
3. Courtney Jonson/Bruna Discordia (FIU) def. Krissy Dowlin/Milica Veselinovic (IOWA) 8-4
Match Notes:
Iowa 18-6; National ranking #31
FIU 21-5; National ranking #39
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (3,5,4,2)
*90-Minute Rain Delay*
-FIU advances to Second Round. Will face winner of Miami/Boston U. match.