No. 12 Miami Resumes ACC Play in the Southeast this Weekend
March 4, 2011
CORAL GABLES, Fla.– The 12th-ranked University of Miami women’s tennis team, fresh off a 4-3 win over No. 4 Michigan on Wednesday, is set to travel to No. 21 Georgia Tech and No. 11 Clemson this weekend.
The Hurricanes (8-2, 1-0 ACC) are in the midst of playing six straight matches against ranked opponents, five of which are currently ranked in the Top 25. The first of those matches came two days ago in Coral Gables, where the `Canes picked up their sixth win against a ranked opponent in a big win over the visiting Wolverines.
The win was big, but head coach Paige Yaroshuk-Tews has been quick to point out her team needs short memory during the stretch and stay focused on what is ahead.
Miami opened ACC play with a convincing 6-1 win over No. 14 Florida State on Feb. 13. That seems like forever ago. The `Canes have played five non-conference games since, four of those coming against Top 20 teams.
The stretch prepares the team for weekends like these, where UM will play the Yellow Jackets (6-4, 1-1 ACC) on Saturday and the Tigers (10-4, 0-1 ACC) on Sunday.
“Tech is a well-coached team that took Clemson down two days ago,” Yaroshuk-Tews said. “We are ready for a tough challenge. We have to play well and focus on our strengths to get the victory.”
The `Canes will be led by 10th-ranked Bianca Eichkorn, who improved to 9-1 in the UM’s No. 1 singles position with a 6-3, 7-5 win over Michigan’s fifth-ranked Denise Muresan. The victory was Eichkorn’s sixth against a nationally-ranked opponent this season.
Other winners for Miami in singles play against Michigan 75th-ranked Anna Bartenstein (No. 2) along with Gabriela Mejia (No. 5).
In doubles, Eichkorn and Bartenstein are a combined 16-3 overall and 9-1 this spring in the `Canes top doubles spot. Mejia and Melissa Bolivar are 7-3 at No. 2 while UM has used six different combinations at No. 3.
Georgia Tech’s top-ranked player is Jillian O’Neill who plays in the No. 2 position and currently ranked 40th in the country. Clemson is led by 15th-ranked Josipa Bek, who is 9-2 in the Tigers’ top singles spot.
Visit HurricaneSports.com.HurricaneSports.com for live scoring for both matches. For additional coverage of the UM women’s tennis team, visit TheUTennis.com.
