No. 8 Miami Stops No. 21 Arkansas, 7-0
March 18, 2009
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Coral Gables, Fla. – Miami’s sixth-ranked Julia Cohen upset fourth-ranked Aurelija Miseviciute of Arkansas in straight sets as the No. 8 Miami Hurricanes (14-3) stormed past visiting No. 21 Arkansas (8-4) by a count of 7-0 on Wednesday in a non-conference women’s tennis match at the Neil Schiff Tennis Center in Coral Gables, Fla.
The Hurricanes looked determined right from the start, as they have now swept their second-straight Top 25 opponent.
“Arkansas is a very dangerous team, and they’re very good,” admits eighth-year head coach Paige Yaroshuk-Tews, now just one win away from her 150th career victory. “To be able to go out there and sweep them tells a lot about our mentality right now. Everybody is accountable for their point. They really have a mentality that they want to dominate tennis matches right now.”
UM took the doubles point to open the match in dramatic fashion.
In No. 1 doubles, the 33rd-ranked team of Miami’s Laura Vallverdu and Michaela Kissell faced off against Arkansas’ 28th-ranked duo of Anouk Tigu and Nanar Airapetian. The two teams went back-and-forth to start the match, with neither duo allowing serve to be broken. Finally, Arkansas broke the Hurricanes’ serve to take a slight 4-3 advantage. Cohen and Vallverdu bounced back to go on a furious rally, winning the match on the strength of five consecutive games. Miami’s duo claimed the upset win, 8-4.
Arkansas’ Kate Lukomskaya and Emily Carbone helped the Razorbacks at the No. 3 doubles spot by claiming a 9-7 win over Miami’s Gabriela Mejia and Claudia Wasilewski. The Razorbacks’ duo led 2-0 at the start, before Mejia and Wasilewski battled back to knot the match, 5-5. UM then went out in front, 6-5, before Arkansas closed out the match, 9-7.
“We had bright spots at No. 3 doubles today, but we are continuing to get better at No. 1 and No. 2,” expressed Yaroshuk-Tews. “We want to peak at the end of the season at No. 3. I think the fact that they played better doubles today is definitely a good thing. Our mentality is to bring in three doubles matches.”
The deciding point took place at the No. 2 position where UM’s Julia Cohen and Bianca Eichkorn went up against Aurelija Miseviciute and Ela Kaluder.
Arkansas took the early charge in front, 2-0, before Eichkorn and Cohen bounced back to pull in four-straight games, moving out in front, 4-2. The Razorbacks’ squad fell behind, 5-3, before surging back into the match, tying the score at 6-6. With Cohen and Eichkorn in front, 7-6, a furious rally pursued in the set-point for the `Canes, seeing Cohen and Eichkorn stamp-out three consecutive kill-shots by Kaluder, only to then take the win on a powerful overhand, winning the match and securing the doubles point for UM, 9-7.
In singles play, the only thing to say is `almost flawless’. That described the events that took place at the two top positions for the `Canes.
No. 6 Julia Cohen entered the match having won her last seven matches–one of them against the nation’s top-ranked player from Clemson (Ani Mijacika). Today, she faced-off against the country’s fourth-ranked player, Aurelija Miseviciute, in flight one singles. Miseviciute entered the match having won 20 of her last 21 matches, with this match being a rematch from last year when Miseviciute took a 7-6(6), 6-1 decision away from Cohen.
Today, Cohen (20-4) never trailed in the match, blowing out to a 3-0 advantage in the first set, dropping only one game en route to a 6-1 decision. That would immediately be followed up by another 6-1 winning set in the second, completing her third consecutive straight-set win over a Top 50 opponent–and the second against a Top 5 foe. With the win, she became the third player on this year’s team to eclipse the 20-win plateau.
“I’ve seen a lot of great tennis on Court No. 1 at UM, and today was undoubtedly some of the best tennis I’ve ever seen here,” commented Yaroshuk-Tews. “That’s not to take anything away from some of the other players that have played on that court, but she [Cohen] came close to playing a perfect match today.”
The match stretched to 3-0 in favor of Miami when freshman Gabriela Mejia (14-10) continued her brilliant play of late with a commanding 6-1, 6-2 line over Nanar Airapetian at the fifth position.
No. 24 Laura Vallverdu (16-6), already a two-time All-American at UM, clinched the match with for the `Canes with a 6-2, 6-2 straight-set win over no. 68 Anouk Tigu at the second slot. Vallverdu looks to be playing some of her best tennis all season, after battling injury for most of the fall campaign.
“Vallverdu is playing like a No. 1 at most programs right now,” stated Yaroshuk-Tews. “She’s playing some good tennis, and she’s totally focused. She is playing like one of the best kids in the country.”
Miami wasn’t quite finished as No. 40 Bianca Eichkorn (28-6) continued her masterful play in 2008-09, collecting her third-straight win with a 7-5, 6-2 line at No. 4 singles against Emily Carbone. Eichkorn is just one win away from tying her wins record from a year ago, with seven matches yet to be played in the regular season for the Hurricanes.
No. 50 Michaela Kissell (25-7) stepped into the third spot today, battling with Arkansas’ Ela Kaluder. After taking the first set, 6-2, Kissell found herself down early in the second set, unable to recover as Kaluder claimed the 6-1 win. With the third set on the line, Kaluder took the early lead, and the two competitors stood even until Kissell broke her serve to take a 5-4 advantage. Kissell then widened the gap at 7-4, and eventually closed her out, 10-6.
The final match was equally exciting as Claudia Wasilewski and Kate Lukomskaya battled at the No. 6 slot. Miami was looking for the shutout, and Arkansas was looking to touch the board.
Wasilewski opened the match with a 7-5 first-set victory, only to see Lukomskaya come back to take the second set, 6-3. With the match in doubt, they moved to a third set, where Lukomskaya broke the zeros with a 3-0 advantage. Wasilewski then tied it up at 3-3, falling behind again, only to tie it once more at 6-6.
With a 6-6 score showing on the board, Wasilewski nudged out in front for the first time in the set, 8-7, holding on to claim the final two points and collect the 10-7 win.
“I think Claudia is handling herself like a junior,” said Yaroshuk-Tews. “She’s been in a lot of these situations at many times. I think Claudia understands the huge role she’s going to play on this team as the season progresses.”
The Hurricanes will step back on the court Friday, Mar. 20 when they play host to No. 15 North Carolina. The match will take place at the Neil Schiff Tennis Center at noon, also marking the fifth consecutive Top 25 team the Hurricanes will meet.
“We’ve got to be ready for a battle,” admits Yaroshuk-Tews. “North Carolina’s a great program with great competitors. I think they’re going to compete harder, and we’ve got to make sure we’re fresh, and not get ahead of ourselves. You’re only as good as your last match. We’ve got to get back out there and get right back at it tomorrow.”
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.
