No. 10 Hurricanes Upend No. 21 TCU, 6-1, in Women's Tennis
Feb. 22, 2009
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Fort Worth, Texas – The No. 10 University of Miami Hurricanes (9-2) claimed all six singles positions to earn a 6-1 decision over homestanding and 21st-ranked TCU (4-3) on Sunday at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center in Fort Worth, Texas. With the win, Miami ends their Texas road swing with an even 1-1 record.
With the win, Miami improves their record against Top 70 opponents out to 6-2 on the spring season. For eighth-year head coach Paige Yaroshuk-Tews, her comments about putting on the hard hats and really working through this past stretch for the `Canes didn’t fall on deaf ears. The Hurricanes have now faced eight ranked opponents in their last nine matches, including five against Top 25 foes.
The match began with the Hurricanes pulling off an upset at the No. 1 doubles position with the aid of teammates Laura Vallverdu and Julia Cohen collecting a decisive 8-4 line over TCU’s 13th-ranked duo of Macall Harkins and Anna Sydorska.
TCU bounced back to claim the No. 2 and 3 doubles spots, respectively, and earn the doubles point heading into the singles matches.
Maria Babanova and Nina Munch-Soegaard of TCU, ranked No. 53 in the latest doubles poll, held off Miami’s Michaela Kissell and Alessa Waibel, 8-6, at the second spot. Meanwhile, Kayla Duncan and Katariina Tuohimaa of TCU defeated Bianca Eichkorn and Gabriela Mejia, 8-5, in the third slot.
In singles play, it was all about the Orange and Green as they swept through the Horned Frogs.
With her match from a day ago against Baylor suspended in the second set, freshman Gabriela Mejia took a 6-0, 6-4 straight-set win over TCU’s Gaby Mastromarino in the No. 5 singles position, tying the match at 1-1.
Miami’s Julia Cohen, ranked No. 20 in the Campbell’s/ITA Singles Rankings, put the `Canes out in front for good as she followed up Mejia with a stunning upset of No. 6 Nina Munch-Soegaard at the first position, using a 3-6, 6-1, 6-1 line for the victory. For Cohen, the win marked her third win over a Top 25 opponent on the 2008-09 campaign.
Junior Claudia Wasilewski bounced back after a tough loss yesterday at the sixth position, downing TCU’s Idunn Hertzberg, 6-1, 7-5 at the No. 6 spot. Wasilewski improves to 3-2 in her last five matches with a decision. She had an abandoned match against Stanford a week ago in Madison, Wis.
Miami’s No. 60 Michaela Kissell made quick work of TCU’s Katarina Tuohimaa at the No 3 position, upending her 6-4, 6-2 for the straight-set win. Laura Vallverdu, ranked No. 34, matched that with her third win over a ranked opponent on the season with a three-set victory over No. 85 Macall Harkins at the second singles position.
Vallverdu earned the win on the strength of a 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 line score.
The final match went to a tie-break in the third set as No. 51 Bianca Eichkorn downed TCU’s Kayla Duncan at the four spot. The scores for Eichkorn went 4-6, 7-5, 1-0 (11-9).
The `Canes return home for their next matchup with the University of Michigan on Feb. 26, coached by University of Miami alumni, Ronnie Bernstein. Match time is set for 2 p.m. at the Neil Schiff Tennis Center in Coral Gables. Admission to the event is free.
For more information on University of Miami women’s tennis, please log on to www.hurricanesports.com. After browsing to the women’s tennis home page, you will find the latest news, stats and match notes pertaining to the Hurricanes Women’s Tennis program.
