Canes and Gators to Play for Spot in NCAA's Final Four
NCAA Bracket l Miami Beats Michigan l Championship Central l Miami’s NCAA Blog l Rizzolo Interview
STANFORD, Calif. – When Miami and Florida met early in the 2011 season, the Gators came away with a 4-1 win at the ITA Indoor Championships in Virginia. This time around the time zone is different, the Canes’ line-up is very different and stakes are obviously much higher.
The seventh-seeded Hurricanes will face second-seeded Gators in the NCAA quarterfinals on Sunday, May 22 at 3 p.m. EST at the Taube Tennis Center. The winner will move on into the NCAA’s Final Four.
“I sense more of a calmness from the girls this time around going into our match with Florida,” head coach Paige Yaroshuk-Tews said. “It helps that we have already seen them once this season and it helps that we had a lot of really close matches with them.”
Miami (21-6) has reached this point in the tournament by taking down FIU in the first round, Texas in the second and Michigan in the Round of 16 on Friday. The Canes beat the Wolverines, by a score of 4-2, getting a big win from freshman Kayla Rizzolo in the No. 4 position to secure the victory and keep Miami’s run going in California.
“As that match went on yesterday, her tennis was getting better,” Yaroshuk-Tews said. “As the season has progressed, her tennis has been getting better. She doesn’t act or play like a freshman and that is what you need on teams that have three freshmen in the line-up. These kids can’t play or act or respond like freshmen and she hasn’t been. She looks like an upperclassman out there and that has been big for us.”
The Gators (28-1) have taken down three teams from the Palmetto State – South Carolina State, South Carolina and Clemson – to reach the quarterfinal round.
When Miami and Florida first met on Feb. 18, only Bianca Eichkorn and Anna Bartenstein were playing in the positions they are currently playing in for the Canes. The Gators line-up has basically stayed the same, with only the sixth position seeing a change since that time.
“The girls know that we need to treat this like any other match,” Yaroshuk-Tews said. “And that is to expect to not leave the courts until we get the `W’. I think if we go into the match with that expectation, great things can happen for us.”
ACC Player of the Year Eichkorn has been the Hurricanes’ best player all season and despite falling in the No. 1 position against Michigan’s eighth-ranked Denise Muresan, she remains one of the top players remaining in the tournament. She will face seventh-ranked Allie Will, who earned a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 win over Eichkorn the last time the two top players met.
At No. 2, Miami’s 36th-ranked Bartenstein comes in playing the best tennis of her career. She has won 16 of her last 17 singles matches, including a convincing 6-1, 6-1 win over Michigan’s Brooke Bolender on Friday. She will now face UF’s 17th-ranked Lauren Embree, who defeated Clemson’s Keri Wong in three sets in the Round of 16.
“Anna played the best match I think I have ever seen her play against Bolender,” Yaroshuk-Tews said. “She looks like she is seeing the ball so big and every time she hits groundies, she is finding that sweet spot. If she is able to keep it rolling, she’ll continue to be successful.”
The rest of the line-up for Miami will feature junior Gabriela Mejia at No. 3, Rizzolo at No. 4, sophomore Danielle Mills at No. 5 and freshman Melissa Bolivar at No. 6. Mills clinched both of Miami’s wins in the first two rounds of the tournament, while Mejia has won eight of her last 10 down the stretch.
Florida will counter from No. 3 to No. 6 with Sofie Oyen, Joanna Mather, Alex Cercone and Caroline Hitimana.
“We are playing really well at some important spots and some important positions,” Yaroshuk-Tews said. “But again, it’s like every other match. We are going to have to come out, jump on this team early and hold our ground. We don’t fear their ranking.”
The doubles point played a key role in both team’s victories on Friday. Both teams earned the point at the No. 1 position, as Florida won 8-6 and Miami held off four match points before eventually earning a 9-8 victory.
Click here for live video and results from the match.
For additional coverage of the UM women’s tennis team, visit TheUTennis.com.
