Ohio State Ends Southern Cal's Four Year Reign; Buckeyes Joined in Men's Final Four by Georgia, UCLA and Virginia

©Colette Lewis 2013--
Urbana, IL--

University of Southern California head coach Peter Smith has had sleepless nights at the NCAA Team Tournament, but the past four years those nights have been spent in celebrating an NCAA championship.  This year, he'll lie awake thinking about what might have been, after his team, seeded fourth, lost to fifth seed Ohio State 4-3 in Saturday evening's semifinal at the Khan Outdoor Tennis Center at the University of Illinois.

Smith may reflect on the match point that Emilio Gomez and Roberto Quiroz had in the tiebreaker that decided the doubles point at No. 2 doubles.

Ohio State easily took the No. 1 doubles match, with Peter Kobelt and Connor Smith defeating Yannick Hanfmann and Raymond Sarmiento 8-3, but the other two matches were as tight as possible.  At one stage, both matches were 7-7 deuce, and both eventually went to tiebreakers, with USC needing to win at lines 2 and 3 to earn the point.

USC's Max De Vroome and Eric Johnson put all the focus on court 2 when they beat Blaz Rola and Hunter Callahan 9-8(3) at 3, with the loud and numerous Ohio State fans turning their full attention to supporting Devin McCarthy and Ille Van Engelen at 2.

USC's Gomez and Quiroz, who played Davis Cup for Ecuador this spring in that country's 3-2 upset of Chile, had a match point at 6-5 in the tiebreaker, with Quiroz serving. The service return was on its way long but Gomez had left a little early and it touched his racquet, giving Ohio State the point.  Gomez and Quiroz saved one match point, but not the second, with Van Engelen converting with a forehand volley winner.

"We jump a little early at that doubles, and that's the difference," said Smith. "When you play a great team like this, the difference is centimeters and that's what it was today."

In the singles, USC took control at lines 5 and 6, but all the other matches were extremely close.  Johnson tied the score with his 6-3, 6-3 win over Chris Diaz at 5, but Ohio State regained the lead with a virtuoso performance by Rola at No. 1. Rola defeated Gomez 6-1, 6-0, but USC answered right back, with De Vroome defeating Constantin Christ 6-3, 6-1 at line 6 to make it 2-2.

USC looked certain to win at 3, with Hanfmann leading Smith 7-5, 4-1, up two breaks in the second set, while the Buckeyes had taken the first sets at lines 2 and 4 in tiebreakers and were early in their second sets.

McCarthy got on a roll in the second set, taking a 5-0 lead over Quiroz and posting the Buckeyes' third point with a 7-6(1), 6-1 win.

By then Smith had gotten both of the breaks back at 3, winning four straight games to take a 5-4 lead, while Kobelt and Sarmiento at 2 were on serve at 5-5 in the second set.  Smith and Hanfmann went to a tiebreaker, as their teammates stood on the sidelines pivoting between the two courts, shouting encouragement after every point.

The 6-foot-7 Kobelt was having no difficulty holding serve, and Sarmiento was holding his with only slightly more effort. Serving at 4-5 in the second, Sarmiento was down 15-30, two points from defeat, but he came up with a big serve himself and some impressive forehands to hold.

By the time the tiebreaker on 2 began, which Sarmiento had to win to extend the match, Hanfmann had pulled USC even with a 7-5, 7-6(4) win over Smith.

For all that was on the line in the tiebreaker, both players stayed focused and executed their shots, with nerves not evidenced in their strokes or their second serves.  Kobelt played flawlessly, getting a minibreak at 3-2 when Sarmiento's backhand went long.  It was all the junior from Ohio needed, with a confident forehand putaway making it 5-3. After a long rally on the next point, it was Sarmiento who finally missed, netting a forehand, and Kobelt had three match points.

Kobelt thought he had hit an ace on his first match point, but the chair confirmed Sarmiento's out call. The crowd agreed with Kobelt, but he showed no signs of dismay or irritation, and immediately hit an excellent second serve. He attacked Sarmiento's return and Sarmiento rushed his next shot, hitting a forehand wide to set off a wild celebration by Ohio State.

"Even a blind squirrel gets a nut once in a while," said Ohio State head coach Ty Tucker. "Ohio State tennis beats USC tennis every once in a while. Hats off to what Peter Smith's done--four national championships in a row. We started this streak with them in 2009 and he continued it for four years. This is a little bit of consolation, that's for sure, but I'd rather have the big trophy from 2009 sitting at our place."

As for the performance of Kobelt in ending the Trojans' run of four straight titles, the voluble Tucker was, almost, at a loss for words.

"Peter Kobelt, what can you say?," said Tucker.  "The guy's got a 135 mile an hour hammer. He's not facing any adversity at all in his service games. Peter Kobelt's made a jump, he's definitely for real."

Kobelt was determined to use what he had learned in his disappointing loss to Virginia's Alex Domijan in the deciding match of the Team Indoor semifinals.

"I don't think I could have handled it as well as I did today if I hadn't been in positions like that in the past," said Kobelt, a junior from Ohio. "I was in a similar position against Alex Domijan at National Indoors and it didn't work out. I really made an effort after that, in practice matches and actual matches, to really focus on closing out matches and if I was ever back in that situation, I would capitalize. And I ended up helping my team advance today."

Peter Smith admitted that despite his belief Ohio State "was well-deserving, they played to win and they won," he was disappointed.

"I won't sleep tonight," Smith said. "I'll have my moments. But that's competition, and you can't always expect to win every one...We put ourselves in a position to win another national championship, and they were just a little too good for us today."
===========================================

No. 5 Ohio State 4,  No. 4 USC 3

4 p.m. CT – North Courts

Singles

1. #12 Blaz Rola (OSU) def. #7 Emilio Gomez (USC)  6-1, 6-0

2. #8 Peter Kobelt (OSU) def. #16 Ray Sarmiento (USC)  7-6(3), 7-6(3)

3. #45 Yannick Hanfmann (USC) def. #71 Connor Smith (OSU)  7-5, 7-6(4)

4. #73 Devin McCarthy (OSU) def. #36 Roberto Quiroz (USC)  7-6(1), 6-1

5. #90 Eric Johnson (USC) def. #104 Chris Diaz (OSU)  6-3, 6-3

6. Max de Vroome (USC) def. Constantin Christ (OSU)  6-3, 6-1

Doubles

1. #12 Kobelt/Smith (OSU) def. #37 Hanfmann/Sarmiento (USC)  8-3

2. #90 McCarthy/Van Engelen (OSU) def. #47 Gomez/Quiroz (USC)  9-8(7)

3. de Vroome/Johnson (USC) def. Rola/Callahan (OSU)  9-8(3)

Order of Finish: Doubles (1,3,2); Singles (5,1,6,4,3,2)

===========================================

The last team to win a national championship before USC's four-year run was the University of Georgia, and the surprising Bulldogs are still in the running to claim the 2013 title after a tense 4-2 victory over No. 11 seed Pepperdine.  Although Georgia is the No. 3 seed, and would have been expected to be in the semifinals, the Bulldogs lost their No. 1 player, KU Singh, who quit the team unexpectedly prior to the NCAA tournament.

Georgia head coach Manny Diaz is getting a little bit tired of all the attention Singh's departure has garnered.

"This is very satisfying, only because I'm tired of answering the question about having such a rough two weeks," Diaz said. "I've been trying not to say anything. But I knew we had a great group that was going to be tough to beat. And that's all you want. Everybody on the same page, everybody fighting hard, everybody united. So we're moving forward, doing the best that we can."

After losing the doubles point to Pepperdine, a team with an indifferent record in doubles this year, Georgia faced a big challenge, but they got a huge boost with freshman Austin Smith's impressive 6-2, 6-0 domination of Finn Tearney at line 3.  Smith had lost badly in Georgia's round of 16 match with Oklahoma on Thursday, and he was determined to improve on that performance.

"I definitely picked up my game today," said Smith, who is from Georgia. "When you get crushed like that, you feel like you need to prove yourself again, redeem myself a little, so I was really excited for this match. I was there last year( in Athens, when Pepperdine defeated Georgia 4-3 in the quarterfinals), I wasn't on the team, but I was watching, and that was a painful, painful loss for us last year, so I was really amped.

Diaz acknowledged how important Smith's quick point was to Georgia.

"That was huge, because I thought that was one of the toughest matchups we had," said Diaz. "He's really growing. He's still somewhat inconsistent at times, like any freshman, but the bigger the match, the bigger he plays. I was very inspired by watching him play the way he did."

Three hours into the match the score was still 1-1, but Georgia took the lead when Nathan Pasha completed his 2-6, 7-5, 6-2 comeback against Alex Sarkissian at line 2.  Pasha was down three break points at 5-5 in the second set, but he fought those off and took the momentum from there.

"After I got that back, it may have broken his spirit a little bit," said Pasha, a sophomore from Georgia. "To be honest, after I got the break I just rolled with it the next set. He looked to be a bit tired and I tried to run him side to side every chance I got."

Georgia picked up their third point with Nunez taking a third set tiebreaker at line 6 over David Sofaer. Nunez was aided in that effort by the large number of noisy Georgia fans, including the Georgia women's team, who packed the stands behind court 6 for that key point.  Pepperdine got its first singles point when Francis Alcantara came from a set and a break down to defeat Hernus Pieters 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 at line 4, making it 3-2, but Georgia's Garrett Brasseaux had broken serve at 4-4 in the third set of his match at line 5 against Mousheg Hovhannisyan. Brasseaux, who clinched the Bulldogs' win over Oklahoma Thursday, came through again, taking a 40-30 lead with a good first serve and on his first match point, forcing an error with a well-struck forehand.

"Pepperdine is a such a tough, deep team," said Diaz. "It's very hard to take four points from them in singles, and we knew we had our work cut out. But we thought we had the right guys to do it."

No. 3 Georgia 4,  No. 11 Pepperdine 2

Noon CT – North Courts

Singles

1. #11 Sebastian Fanselow (PEPP) vs. #33 Ben Wagland (UGA)  7-5, 6-7(0), 4-3*

2. #47 Nathan Pasha (UGA) def. #62 Alex Sarkissian (PEPP)  2-6, 7-5, 6-2

3. Austin Smith (UGA) def. #107 Finn Tearney (PEPP)  6-2, 6-0

4. #102 Francis Alcantara (PEPP) def. #115 Hernus Pieters (UGA)  4-6, 7-5, 6-3

5. Garrett Brasseaux (UGA) def. Mousheg Hovhannisyan (PEPP)  6-4, 4-6, 6-4

6. Marco Nunez (UGA) def. Davis Sofaer (PEPP)  1-6, 6-3, 7-6(4)

Doubles

1. Fanselow/Alcantara (PEPP) vs. #5 Pieters/Wagland (UGA)  5-4*

2. Sarkissian/Tearney (PEPP) def. #15 Pasha/Brasseaux (UGA)  8-3 

3. Hovhannisyan/Sofaer (PEPP) def. Nunez/Diaz (UGA)  8-4

Order of Finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (3,2,6,4,5)

*= unfinished

===========================================

Georgia's opponent in the Monday's semifinal will be No. 2 seed Virginia, who beat No. 7 seed Tennessee 4-0 in the day's most unfortunate ending.

Tennessee's Mikelis Libietis, the No. 1 ranked player in the country, rolled his left ankle on set point in the second set against Virginia's Jarmere Jenkins, with Virginia already leading 2-0.  Libietis had the ankle taped, but his mobility was severely hampered and although he continued, he also showed signs of pain in his knee, and retired down 3-0 in the third.

Virginia had taken the doubles point and the match at line 2, with Alex Domijan beating Hunter Reese 6-2, 6-3.  With Libietis' retirement, it was 3-0, and both Mitchell Frank at lind 3 and Mac Styslinger at line 5 were serving for their matches and the fourth point.  Both were broken, but Styslinger had the luxury of two breaks and he delivered the second time, beating John Collins  6-4, 6-4.

Tennessee head coach Sam Winterbotham described Libietis' injury. 

"[It was] set point and he had to slide into a shot to take it down the line, and you just saw his knee and ankle stick. He played on, but he wasn't able to play. He didn't want to stop. It was basically him trying to see if he could feel better but it wasn't just his ankle. When his ankle turned over, it jarred his knee."

Later in the day, it was determined that Libietis didn't have any structural damage, so he is still in the individual tournament in both singles and doubles as of now.

Virginia head coach Brian Boland was pleased his team has reached the semifinals for the fourth straight year, but acknowledged that Libietis' injury made for conflicting emotions.

"I feel bad for the Tennessee player, he's an outstanding player at No. 1, Mikey, and hopefully he's okay," Boland said. "The guy's just a tremendous player and it's sad to see something like that happen.  It's had to continue focusing when you see something like that happen, but our guys and I think Tennesee did a good job with that. It's wasn't easy, and that's sad to see, but hopefully he's okay."

Jenkins said he was able to recapture his focus after the injury.

"It can be hard if you let it," Jenkins said, who ended up winning the match 4-6, 6-4, 3-0, ret. "I was just trying to play the match as if he were 100 percent healthy. I just tried to stay pumped up, and stay focused on my court, and it worked well.  Credit to him, he was on today, having a lot of confidence in his forehand, slapping it all over the court. He played well."

===========================================

No. 2 Virginia 4,  No. 7 Tennessee 0

Noon CT – South Courts

Singles

1. #3 Jarmere Jenkins (UVA) def. #1 Mikelis Libietis (TENN)  4-6, 6-4, 3-0, ret.

2. #2 Alex Domijan (UVA) def. #34 Hunter Reese (TENN)  6-2, 6-3

3. #39 Mitchell Frank (UVA) vs. Brandon Fickey (TENN)  6-3, 5-5*
4. Jarryd Chaplin (TENN) vs. #69 Ryan Shane (UVA)  6-4, 3-6, 4-2*
5. #28 Mac Styslinger (UVA) def. John Collins (TENN)  6-4, 6-4

6. Julen Uriguen (UVA) vs. Edward Jones (TENN)  7-5, 5-5*

Doubles

1. #4 Jenkins/Styslinger (UVA) def. #1 Libietis/Reese (TENN)  9-7

2. #21 Domijan/Frank (UVA) vs. Fickey/Chaplin (TENN)  6-6*

3. #89 Shane/Uriguen (UVA) def. #34 Jones/Collins (TENN)  8-4

Order of Finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (2,1,5)

* = unfinished

===========================================

Ohio State's opponent in Monday's semifinal will be top seed UCLA, who beat No. 9 Duke 4-0.

The Bruins took a closely contested doubles point, but Duke came back to post four first sets in singles, making UCLA earn their victory.

Karue Sell collected UCLA's second point with a 6-0, 6-2 win over Jason Tahir at line 6, and Dennis Novikov earned a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Henrique Cunha at line 1 to make it 3-0.  UCLA trailed in three other matches, but at line 3, Adrien Puget had earned a split with Michael Redlicki, and with his 1-6, 6-2, 6-1 victory, he spared his teammates at least another hour on the court.

UCLA coach Billy Martin thought Novikov played one of his best matches  of the year against Cunha. 

"That match at No. 1 was huge for us," said Martin. "That's probably for sure Novikov's best win. We know he's dangerous, but [Cunha] is so solid. He just happened to have one of his best matches of the year, and we needed it today. To beat Cunha in both singles and doubles in the same day is a great accomplishment."

Novikov didn't disagree with his coach's assessment.

"It was definitely one of the better matches I've played," said the sophomore from California. "Every match throughout the season I keep improving, trying to peak around this time. I thought I played pretty well. I served overall really well. It wasn't anything special, but it was a solid match overall."

===========================================

No. 1 UCLA 4 – No. 9 Duke 0

4 p.m. CT – South Courts

Singles

1. #27 Dennis Novikov (UCLA) def. #9 Henrique Cunha (DUKE)  6-4, 6-4

2. #43 Fred Saba (DUKE) vs. #25 Marcos Giron (UCLA)  6-3, 5-5*

3. #22 Adrien Puget (UCLA) def. #46 Michael Redlicki (DUKE)  1-6, 6-2, 6-1

4. #121 Chris Mengel (DUKE) vs. #75 Dennis Mkrtchian (UCLA)  7-6(7), 2-1*

5. #74 Raphael Hemmeler (DUKE) vs. #119 Clay Thompson (UCLA)  7-6(3), 4-3*

6. Karue Sell (UCLA) def. Jason Tahir (DUKE)  6-0, 6-2

Doubles

1. #42 Giron/Novikov (UCLA) def. #2 Cunha/Hemmeler (DUKE)  8-6

2. #77 Puget/Sell (UCLA) def. #19 Tahir/Redlicki (DUKE)  9-8(5)

3. Brigham/Thompson (UCLA) vs. Saba/Semenzato (DUKE)  6-6*

Order of Finish: Doubles (1,2); Singles (6,1,3)

*= unfinished

North Carolina and UCLA Down Big Ten Foes to Set Up Rematch of Team Indoor Final

©Colette Lewis 2013--
Urbana, IL--

No. 2 seed North Carolina went to bed without knowing who they would be playing in Sunday's quarterfinal, but when the Tar Heels wake up Saturday morning, they will see they've got a rematch of the thrilling Team Indoor final with the No. 7 UCLA Bruins.

North Carolina earned their way into the quarterfinals three hours before UCLA did, with the Tar Heels defeating No. 15 seed Nebraska 4-1 on the Khan Outdoor Center's south courts.

After taking the doubles point, the Tar Heels took four first sets in singles from the Cornhuskers, who were making their first Sweet 16 appearance in program history.  But Nebraska pulled even with a 6-4, 6-1 win by Stefanie Weinstein at line 3, and got a boost when Mary Weatherholt took the second set from Gina Suarez-Malaguti at line 1.

But once Lauren McHale took a tough second set at No. 5, the Tar Heels found additional energy, and victories by Caroline Price at 4 and Kate Vialle at 6 came quickly on the heels of McHale's win.

"When Lauren won her second set tiebreaker, it kind of got us over the hump a little bit," said North Carolina head coach Brian Kalbas. "Then Caroline did a very good job of closing her second set out, and then Kate, it was tight, three all in the second, and she won the last three games. So I thought once Lauren won that close second set, we got a little more momentum and closed the matches out."

Kalbas admitted he would not be staying to see who his team would play on Sunday, with the UCLA and Michigan match not even begun on the North courts, when his team had claimed their victory.

"We've played both those teams and we know them pretty well, so I think I need some rest," said Kalbas, who went on to praise the effort of the Cornhuskers. "I give them a lot of credit. They're very well coached, they're a high class operation and I respect what Scott (Jacobson) and Hayden (Perez) have done with that program. They've gotten better, and made the Team Indoor and the round of 16. They competed very well and gave us a huge battle."
==========================================
No. 2 North Carolina 4,  No. 15 Nebraska 1
7 p.m. CT – South Courts
Singles
1. #11 Mary Weatherholt (NEB) vs. #7 Gina Suarez-Malaguti (UNC)  3-6, 6-1, 3-2*
2. #49 Zoe De Bruycker (UNC) vs. Patricia Veresova (NEB)  1-6, 6-1, 1-1*
3. Stefanie Weinstein (NEB) def. #39 Whitney Kay (UNC)  6-4, 6-1   
4. #46 Caroline Price (UNC) def. Janine Weinreich (NEB)  7-6(2), 6-2
5. Lauren McHale (UNC) def. Maggy Lehmicke (NEB)  6-0, 7-6(0)
6. Kate Vialle (UNC) def. Izabella Zgierska (NEB)  6-1, 6-3

Doubles
1. #58 Price/Kay (UNC) vs. #3 Weatherholt/Veresova (NEB)  7-6*
2. McHale/Dai (UNC) def. Weinstein/Weinreich (NEB)  8-2
3. Suarez-Malaguti/Lyons (UNC) def. Lehmicke/Zgierska (NEB)  8-3

Order of Finish: Doubles (2,3); Singles (3,5,4,6)
* = unfinished
==========================================

Once the UCLA Bruins finally took the court Friday evening, at 11:30 p.m., they were able to do what the other three winners on the North Courts could not: post a victory in less than three hours.  After a long and seesaw doubles point went to the Bruins, they took control in singles, posting a 4-0 victory over Michigan in a match that ended just prior to 2 a.m.

Courtney Dolehide gave UCLA its second point with a quick 6-1, 6-0 win over Kristen Dodge at line 6, and with four of the five first sets that were decided, the Bruins were in good shape.

Robin Anderson at line 1 and Kyle McPhillips at line 2 did the honors, with McPhillips giving UCLA point number three with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Ronit Yurovsky, and just moments later, Anderson broke Emina Bektas to earn the fourth point by a 6-3, 6-4 score.

Head coach Stella Sampras Webster acknowledged the difficulty both teams had in waiting over four hours past their original start time to take the courts.

"It was tough," said Sampras Webster. "It was tough on both teams to wait and play this late, not knowing when to eat, to stretch, how to get ready. I think our team did a good job, but they didn't come out as strong as I would have liked in doubles, but getting that doubles point kind of relieved some of the stress, the pressure. We played really well, and when you're in this, you don't really know what time it is--you're playing, you're competing and it's intense. I just look at the clock, and I'm like wow, it's 12:30. They did a great job of keeping their energy up and come out and compete hard."

Sampras Webster said her team is looking forward to that rematch with North Carolina.

"We're excited. They're a great team and I know we're looking forward to playing them," Sampras Webster said. "We're definitely where we want to be. The team did a great job of staying focused and doing what they needed to do. They really want this, they really want to do well here, and they did what we needed them to do."
==========================================
No. 7 UCLA 4,  No. 10 Michigan 0
7 p.m. CT – North Courts
Singles
1. #3 Robin Anderson (UCLA) def. #30 Emina Bektas (MICH)  6-3, 6-4
2. #20 Kyle McPhillips (UCLA) def. #58 Ronit Yurovsky (MICH)  6-1, 6-2
3. Pamela Montez (UCLA) vs. Brooke Bolender (MICH)  7-6(3)*
4. #99 Sarah Lee (MICH) vs. Chanelle Van Nguyen (UCLA)  6-3, 3-2*
5. #93 Catherine Harrison (UCLA) vs. Amy Zhu (MICH)  7-6(3), 2-1*
6. Courtney Dolehide (UCLA) def. Kristen Dodge (MICH)  6-1, 6-0

Doubles
1. #6 Bektas/Bolender (MICH) def. #25 Anderson/Morton (UCLA)  8-6
2. #38 Dolehide/Montez (UCLA) def. #90 Lee/Nguyen (MICH)  9-7
3. Harrison/McPhillips (UCLA) def. Yurovsky/Dodge (MICH)  8-2

Order of Finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (6,2,1)
* = unfinished

NOTE: Match was completed on Saturday, but is being backdated to keep all the women's matches on the same day.

Miami Women Take 4-3 Decision From Northwestern to Set Up Quarterfinal with Texas A&M

©Colette Lewis 2013--
Urbana, IL--

The North courts at the Khan Outdoor Tennis Center were the scene of one marathon after another in the women's round of 16 Friday.  After Cal needed four hours to subdue Alabama, and Stanford battled past Southern California in five hours, No. 6 seed Miami and No. 11 Northwestern took the courts for their 4 p.m. match at 7 p.m. Keeping the theme going, it was 11 p.m. before the Hurricanes earned a 4-3 victory to advance to the quarterfinals against No. 3 seed Texas A&M.

Miami started off comfortably, taking the doubles point in dominating fashion and getting a quick 6-1, 6-2 victory from Stephanie Wagner at No. 1.

But that was all that came easy for Miami. Kelsey Laurente of Miami and Linda Mushrefova of Northwestern, playing side by side on courts 2 and 4, won their matches simultaneously, giving Miami a 3-1 lead.

Northwestern made it 3-2 with Alicia Barnett's three-set win over Monique Albuquerque at line 5, just as splits came on courts 3 and 6.  Nida Hamilton of Northwestern forced a third at line 6, as did Lina Lilekite of Miami at line 3.

Lilekite took a 3-0 lead in the third set, but Niu won the next four games to go up a break.  She gave it back for 4-4 and Lilekite held in the next game, which featured five deuces. Serving at 4-5, Niu faced a match point at 30-40, but she hit a confident overhead to save it, then another to get a game point, which she converted for 5-5. Niu broke and then served out the match, making it 3-3.

On court 6, Melissa Bolivar of Miami had squandered a 3-1 lead in the third set, but she broke Hamilton at 4-4 to give herself a chance to serve for the match.  As all the coaches and teammates moved to the sidelines of the far court, Bolivar took a 40-0 lead.  On the first match point, Bolivar double faulted, and on the second she netted a backhand early in the rally.  On the third match point, the ball crossed over the net several dozen times, the tension building with each stroke, when Hamilton finally found a ball she liked and hit a forehand to the far sideline. Bolivar called it out, and the Northwestern fans and a few UCLA supporters sitting behind the fence on the line immediately rose as one to protest. Hamilton appealed to the chair umpire, who confirmed Bolivar's call, and the match was over.

"Northwestern's a great team," said head coach Paige Yaroshuk-Tews. "They always give us trouble. They seem to pick on our weaknesses and play them well.  We responded well today in some positions and we didn't respond so well in other positions, but it was a great college tennis match."

Yaroshuk-Tews didn't feel either team played their best tennis, possibly due to the three-hour delay in getting on the courts for their match.

"Getting off the court at 11:15 at night after hitting four times, you're at times just hoping a kid doesn't get hurt. It's just a little crazy to me. Last year we were playing until 2 a.m., this year (Michigan and UCLA) are going to be playing to 3 a.m. I don't think you're seeing the best tennis you would see from Northwestern or Miami in these conditions, and it's unfortunate it's happening at the NCAA tournament, but it is what it is."

Asked what she thought of the match's controversial finish, Yaroshuk-Tews supported her player.

"Obviously, if there's a close call made on the far sideline and there's 30 opposing fans on top of the line, obviously they're going to make it out like you stole the match from us," said Yaroshuk-Tews. "That's not how we play, that's not how my player plays. The umpire supported my player and I support my player's call. I was clear on the other side of the court. I think it was a very fair match from both teams from beginning to end. It's unfortunate some fans would make a kid that's been out there for that long fighting for a match think like that on the way out. That's a little disappointing to me, but I back my kid's call all the way."

No. 6 Miami  4,  No. 11 Northwestern 3

4 p.m. CT – North Courts

Singles

1. #60 Stephanie Wagner (MIA) def. Veronica Corning (NU)  6-1, 6-2

2. #81 Kelsey Laurente (MIA) def. #57 Kate Turvy (NU)  6-1, 6-3

3. Belinda Niu (NU) def. #105 Lina Lilekite (MIA)  6-3, 4-6, 7-5

4. Linda Abu Mushrefova (NU) def. #102 Clementina Riobueno (MIA)  6-0, 6-4

5. Alicia Barnett (NU) def. Monique Albuquerque (MIA)  6-3, 1-6, 6-1

6. Melissa Bolivar (MIA) def. Nida Hamilton (NU)  7-6(6), 1-6, 6-4

Doubles

1. Albuquerque/Riobueno (MIA) def. #14 Mushrefova/Hamilton (NU)  8-1

2. Bolivar/Laurente (MIA) vs. Corning/Barnett (NU)  6-3*

3. Wagner/Dubins (MIA) def. Turvy/Niu (NU)  8-1

Order of Finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (1,2,4,5,3,6)

* = unfinished

===========================================

There was much less drama in No. 3 Texas A&M's 5-0 win over No. 14 Virginia.

The Aggies reached their first NCAA quarterfinal by taking the doubles point, and getting wins from Ines Deheza at line 4 and Nazari Urbina at line 3 to make it 3-0.

Texas A&M had some difficulty closing it out, with Cristina Sanchez-Quintanar at No. 1 losing two straight games to Julia Elbaba at 7-5, 5-0.  Cristina Stancu got a 5-2 lead over Stephanie Nauta at line 2 however, and both were in and won their match points to make the final score 5-0.

Head coach Howard Joffe knew that even after winning five of six first sets, that Virginia would bounce back.

"No one's ever really beaten, because they've done so much competing," Joffe said. "While we did race into some leads, it's kind of like an NBA playoff game, where you get up by 15 and don't go get the popcorn because it's going to be tied. I did like that when Virginia did start to rally, there was minimal whining and complaining. We stuck to the task and we're definitely playing quite well."

Joffe and his team are in the unusual position of being highly ranked, but without extensive NCAA Sweet 16 experience.

At the most basic level, I understand we have eight very, very fine players and there's no team that we can't beat," Joffe said. "And I think our record would indicate that. On the other hand, we've got a coach who's never made as a head coach the last 16 and a bunch of young ladies who haven't played at the finals site. So I guess it is a little scary, but we do have three seniors and a junior and our freshmen are very mature. We've handled all the trials and tribulations well, so it's not that much of a concern."

No. 3 Texas A&M 5,  No. 14 Virginia 0

4 p.m. CT – South Courts

Singles

1. #4 Cristina Sanchez-Quintanar (TAMU) def. #12 Julia Elbaba (UVA)  7-5, 6-2

2. #68 Cristina Stancu (TAMU) def. #78 Stephanie Nauta (UVA)  6-4, 2-6, 6-2

3. #52 Nazari Urbina (TAMU) def. Hana Tomljanovic (UVA)  6-3, 6-4

4. Ines Deheza (TAMU) def. Li Xi (UVA)  6-2, 6-1

5. Anna Mamalat (TAMU) vs. Erin Vierra (UVA)  2-6, 6-2, 4-1*

6. Stefania Hristov (TAMU) vs. Caryssa Peretz (UVA)  6-1, 3-6, 5-2*

Doubles

1. #18 Stancu/Hristov (TAMU) def. Nauta/Vierra (UVA)  9-7

2. #49 Wen/Sanchez-Quintanar (TAMU) def. Elbaba/Tomljanovic (UVA) 7-4*

3. Deheza/Deheza (TAMU) def. Fuccillo/Xi (UVA)  8-3

Order of Finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (4,3,2,1)

* = unfinished

Stanford Wins Five-Hour Thriller Over Southern Cal, Will Meet Georgia in Quarterfinals

©Colette Lewis 2013--
Urbana, IL--

No. 12 seed Stanford came into their round of 16 meeting Friday with Pac-12 rival and No. 5 seed Southern Cal with revenge on their minds. The Cardinal had lost 6-1 to USC just weeks ago, and last year the Women of Troy eliminated Stanford in a tense 4-2 quarterfinal in Athens.

It took nearly five hours, but Stanford accomplished their mission, defeating Southern Cal 4-3, with sophomore Ellen Tsay clinching the victory at No. 5 singles.

"It's really sweet," said Stanford head coach Lele Forood. "We've had some real battles with USC. They eliminated us from the tournament last year, and they killed us at their place a little over a month ago. We were looking for payback, it was a really close match; it could have gone either way, quite frankly."

The doubles point, which lasted ninety minutes, saw Nicole Gibbs and Kristie Ahn deal USC's Sabrina Santamaria and Kaitlyn Christian their first loss of the season in a tiebreaker.  Gibbs and Ahn served for the match twice, at 7-4 and 7-6, but overcame those lapses, dominated the tiebreaker, winning it 9-8(2) to give the Cardinal a precious first point.

In singles, USC took four first sets, but Stanford struck first, with Stacey Tan making it 2-0 with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Giuliana Olmos at line 4. Kaitlyn Christian gave USC its first point with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Natalie Dillon at line 6, but Stanford answered back when Nicole Gibbs took down Sabrina Santamaria 7-6(3), 6-2, after trailing 5-1 in the first set.

With Stanford leading 3-1, USC had leads on the other three courts, but only Zoe Scandalis could close it out in two sets. When she defeated Krista Hardebeck 6-3, 7-6(5) at No. 3, it was 3-2, with Kristie Ahn of Stanford and Tsay both forcing third sets with Danielle Lao and Gabriella DeSimone.

Tsay had trailed 7-5, 3-0, so that was an opportunity lost for USC, but Forood knew that Tsay would be dangerous if she extended DeSimone into a third set.

"Gabby's had some physical problems," said Forood. "We know each other so well, and she had to struggle at Ojai and was on crutches when we left the Pac-12s, so she was doing a great job with what she's been through over the last month. But that's the thing, when you play a team you're really familiar with, you know an awful lot of what's going on. So Ellen just hung in there and did a really good job."

Lao was unable to close out Ahn on her first attempt, serving at 5-4 in the third, but she succeeded the second time tying the match with her 6-4, 2-6, 7-5 victory and sending all attention to court 5, the last court in the bank of six.

Less than a minute after Lao made it 3-3, Tsay got a break with DeSimone serving at 3-4.  Stepping to the line, Tsay showed no sign of nerves, serving well to get two shanked returns from DeSimone,  staying in the two rallies after that and crafting a 40-15 lead.  On the first match point, she missed her first serve, but her second was outstanding, and when DeSimone's forehand found the net, the celebration began for the Cardinal.

"I thought my second serve was really solid today," said Tsay, a sophomore from California. "I had maybe only one double fault. And that gave me a lot of confidence. Even when my first serve wasn't cutting it, I didn't get nervous or anything."

Tsay had clinched plenty of matches for the Cardinal this year, but she knew this one was different.

"This is actually the first one where I felt like I clinched," said Tsay. "The other ones, I feel the other people on my team were up and even if I hadn't won my match, we probably would have won. But this is like the biggest moment for me so far in my two years, so if felt pretty good."

Gibbs said Tsay's concentration was impressive throughout the three hours and fifteen minutes she was on court.

"We we sitting in the (post-match) team meeting just now and Lele was talking about how I won my match, and Ellen said to me, 'oh, you won?' She had no idea," said Gibbs. "And I think that's so valuable, and a lot of the reason that she probably pulled it out today, just focusing in on the things she needed to focus on, and being such a champion out there."
==========================================
No. 12 Stanford 4,  No. 5 USC 3
Noon CT – North Courts
Singles
1. #13 Nicole Gibbs (STAN) def. #2 Sabrina Santamaria (USC)  7-6(3), 6-2
2. #9 Danielle Lao (USC) def. #25 Kristie Ahn (STAN)  6-4, 2-6, 7-5
3. #27 Zoe Scandalis (USC) def. #14 Krista Hardebeck (STAN)  6-3, 7-6(5)
4. #103 Stacey Tan (STAN) def. #79 Giuliana Olmos (USC)  6-2, 6-2
5. #92 Ellen Tsay (STAN) def. Gabriella DeSimone (USC)  5-7, 7-5, 6-3
6. Kaitlyn Christian (USC) def. Natalie Dillon (STAN)  6-3, 6-1

Doubles
1. #8 Ahn/Gibbs (STAN) def. #2 Christian/Santamaria (USC)  9-8(2)
2. Olmos/Scandalis (USC) def. #28 Tan/Tsay (STAN)  8-6
3. Dillon/Hardebeck (STAN) def. DeSimone/Lao (USC)  8-1

Order of Finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (4,6,1,3,2,5)
=========================================

Although they finished more than two hours before Stanford did, No. 4 seed Georgia wouldn't claim their 4-2 win over No. 13 Clemson was an easy one.  Georgia lost the doubles point, with the Tigers' Yana Koroleva and Beatrice Gumulya taking down the nation's top-ranked team of Kate Fuller and Silvia Garcia 8-3 in the process.

In the singles, the Bulldogs took four first sets, yet the outcome was very much in doubt until deep in the second set of the match between Maho Kowase and Liz Jeukeng at line 2.

Clemson took a 2-0 lead with Koroleva's 6-2, 6-0 win over Lauren Herring at No. 1, but Kate Fuller quickly followed with a win for Georgia at No. 4. Garcia tied it at 2, with a win at line 3, and Mia King gave the Bulldogs their first lead with a 6-1, 3-6, 6-2 win over Tristen Dewar at line 6.

Jeukeng needed to take the second set from Kowase, and she served for it at 6-5, but the freshman was broken at love, and Kowase was the more solid performer in the tiebreaker, earning a 7-6(4), 7-6(2) win to put Georgia in the quarterfinals for the third year in a row.

"Maho's just done a great job against Clemson," said Georgia head coach Jeff Wallace, recalling her clinching match in Georgia's 4-3 victory over Clemson in last year's round of 32. "She's done a great job against so many schools, but it just seems like every time with Clemson it comes down to her court.  She's so tenacious, puts so many balls in play and is so hard to play against, because you're really going to have to come up with some special stuff to beat her. Not many people are able to do that."

"I thought Liz played well and it was a really tough match," Wallace continued. "You get two tiebreakers and things can go either way, but I was really proud of Maho, getting it done again for us."

No. 4 Georgia 4,  No. 13 Clemson 2
Noon CT – South Courts
Singles
1. #16 Yana Koroleva (CLEM) def. #6 Lauren Herring (UGA)  6-2, 6-0
2. #19 Maho Kowase (UGA) def. Liz Jeukeng (CLEM)  7-6(4), 7-6(2)
3. #104 Silvia Garcia (UGA) def. #40 Beatrice Gumulya (CLEM)  6-4, 6-3
4. Kate Fuller (UGA) def. Romy Koelzer (CLEM)  6-4, 6-1
5. Ayaka Okuno (UGA) vs. Ani Miao (CLEM) 5-7, 6-3, 3-0*
6. Mia King (UGA) def. Tristen Dewar (CLEM)  6-3, 1-6, 6-2

Doubles
1. Koroleva/Gumulya (CLEM) def. #1 Fuller/Garcia (UGA)  8-3
2. Herring/Kowase (UGA) vs. Koelzer/Dewar (CLEM)  8-3
3. Jeukeng/Miao (CLEM) def. Kimbell/King (UGA)  8-1

Order of Finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (1,4,3,6,2)
* = unfinished

Defending Champion Florida Women Roll into Quarterfinals to Face Battle-tested Cal Bears

©Colette Lewis 2013--
Urbana, IL--

The two-time defending champion Gators were sympathetic to the plight faced by Duke, their Round of 16 opponent Friday morning at the Khan Outdoor Tennis Center at the University of Illinois, but that didn't stop the No. 1 seeds from claiming a 4-0 win over the short-handed Blue Devils.

"If anyone can appreciate what Duke did this year, getting here with four players, it's Dave ( Balogh, associate head coach) and I," said Florida head coach Roland Thornqvist, who had faced a similar situation a few years back. "It's a remarkable feat on their part to get to the round of 16. They gave us everything we could handle on the courts where they could be competitive, and they were very, very competitive so we can appreciate what they did."

Playing with four scholarship players and a walk-on due to season-ending injuries to three starters, as well as the dismissal from school of last year's No. 1 Beatrice Capra, Duke had to forfeit No. 3 doubles and No. 6 singles.  Florida took the doubles point, and Olivia Janowicz soon made it 3-0 with her 6-1, 6-2 victory over soccer player Nicole Lipp, the mid-season addition to the team.

From there Florida needed just one more point, and although they had won first sets on three of the four matches remaining, Duke didn't make it easy for the Gators.  Hanna Mar earned a split with top-ranked Lauren Embree at 1 and Sofie Oyen couldn't close out her 5-1 lead over Mary Clayton so it was up to Florida freshman Brianna Morgan at line 4. Morgan did what the two veterans couldn't, finishing off Marianne Jodoin 6-3, 6-0.

Although the match took less than three hours to complete, Duke head coach Jamie Ashworth knew that was irrelevant given the adversity his team had experienced throughout the spring.

"I think our girls learned a lot the last couple weeks about themselves," said Ashworth. "We struggled at the end of the season with some things, but we had two weeks of really good practice. We just had to compete and fight our butts off. I told them outside our locker room no one believed we could win last weekend against Mississippi and no one believed we could beat Texas Tech. But I told them that some of the best things in sport come when no one believes you can win and you go out and do it."

As for what lessons from this Duke will take into next year, Ashworth said, "Hopefully we get some people back and we get some people healthy, and I think they've learned that they don't just have to rely on talent, that they can win with heart and win with passion and pride, and that can carry you a long way. It's definitely a great learning experience, for myself too. I've never gone through anything like this, and you kind of take things for granted. Our girls are used to playing at home for regionals, they're used to playing here, but as soon as you look ahead....in January we thought we had a chance to win the thing, but you can't look ahead."

==========================================
No. 1 Florida 4,  Duke 0
9 a.m. CT – South Courts
Singles
1. #1 Lauren Embree (FLA) vs. #29 Hanna Mar (DUKE)  6-1, 3-5*
2. #17 Sofie Oyen (FLA) vs. #106 Mary Clayton (DUKE)  6-1, 5-4*
3. Annie Mulholland (DUKE) vs. #51 Alexandra Cercone (FLA)  6-3, 2-3*
4. #89 Brianna Morgan (FLA) vs. Marianne Jodoin (DUKE)  6-3, 6-0
5. #123 Olivia Janowicz (FLA) vs. Nicole Lipp (DUKE)  6-1, 6-2
6. #116 Caroline Hitimana (FLA) def. – (DUKE)  Forfeit

Doubles
1. #11 Embree/Oyen (FLA) def. Clayton/Mar (DUKE)  8-1
2. Cercone/Hitmana (FLA) vs. Jodoin/Mulholland (DUKE)  4-4*
3. Collins/Morgan (FLA) def. – (DUKE)  Forfeit

Order of Finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (6,5,4)
* = unfinished
==========================================

Long after Florida had advanced, their quarterfinal opponent Sunday was still in doubt, with No. 8 seed California and No. 9 seed Alabama needing over four hours to decide their match, which went to the Bears 4-1.

Alabama took the doubles point, but the Bears came back in singles, taking five of the six first sets.

In quick succession, the Bears got wins from Klara Fabikova at line 2, Lynn Chi at line 4 and Anett Schutting at line 1 to take a 3-1 lead, but that fourth point remained elusive.

Annie Goransson of Cal served for that clinching point, breaking Emily Zabor at line 6 to take a 6-2, 6-5 lead, but she never got to match point, and Zabor completely outplayed her in the tiebreaker to earn a third set.

For a 10-minute period, it looked as if the match might come down to that match, with Alabama up a break in the third at both line 3 and line 5.  Natalie Maynetto of Alabama held on to hers at 5, but Maya Jansen couldn't hold off Zsofi Susanyi at 3, who won the final five games of the match for the 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 victory that put the Bears in the quarterfinals.

Susanyi, who missed a big portion of the spring season due to a hip flexor problem and was sick this week to boot, was a semifinalist in the NCAAs last year, so head coach Amanda Augustus of Cal had confidence in her, even down 3-1.

"Zsofi hasn't played as many matches as she would like this year," said Augustus. "She's been working really, really hard to get it healthy and play as much as she can.  She wants to be here and she wants to play these matches for the team, so I know when she's out there and she's down a break, she can turn it around. The girl changed her game game quite a few times against Zsofi--she'd hit the ball and then stay back and roll the ball, so I think Zsofi was trying to figure out what to do. Zsofi's great to coach because she is open to making adjustments within a match, so yeah, I felt pretty confident she could close that one out."

Augustus couldn't remember the last time Cal had played Florida, and she is eager for Sunday's meeting.

"Obviously, they're two-time defending champions, they're well coached, they're a great team," said Augustus. "I had Lauren Embree on the Master U team in France, so I know what a competitor she is. We're looking forward to it, it's great, it'll be great tennis. We have a lot of respect for their program and we've been working hard all year too, so we want to battle them and see who plays better on that day."

No. 8 California 4,  No. 9 Alabama 1
9 a.m. CT – North Courts
Singles
1. #8 Anett Schutting (CAL) def. #34 Mary Anne Macfarlane (ALA)  6-3, 7-6(1)
2. #43 Klara Fabikova (CAL) def. #36 Alexa Guarachi (ALA)  6-2, 0-6, 6-3
3. #5 Zsofi Susanyi (CAL) def. #118 Maya Jansen (ALA)  6-3, 4-6, 6-3
4. #70 Lynn Chi (CAL) def. Antonia Foehse (ALA)  7-6(1), 6-0
5. Natalia Maynetto (ALA) vs. Tayler Davis (CAL)  6-4, 3-6, 5-1*
6. Annie Goransson (CAL) vs. Emily Zabor (ALA)  6-2, 6-7(1), 3-0*

Doubles
1. Guarachi/Macfarlane (ALA) def. #33 Shutting/Chi (CAL)  8-5
2. Fabikova/Goransson (CAL) vs. Foehse/Jansen (ALA)  7-5*
3. Maynetto/Zabor (ALA) def. Davis/Chui (CAL)  8-5

Order of Finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (2,4,1,3)
* = unfinished

Early Delivery Keeps Coach at Home, but Duke Advances to Quarterfinals with Wee Hours Victory Over Kentucky

©Colette Lewis 2013--
Urbana, IL--

Duke head coach Ramsey Smith was not with his team for their quarterfinal match with Kentucky because his wife Kathy went into labor seven weeks early. Kathy Sell Smith, the former head coach of the Princeton women's team, delivered a baby girl Sophie, and his team delivered a 4-2 quarterfinal victory over the eighth-seeded Wildcats in a match that ended at 12:24 a.m. on Friday morning.

Assistant coach Jonathan Stokke took over for Smith, and the No. 9 Blue Devils had time to get used to the idea that Smith would not be traveling with them to the Sweet 16.

"As the week went on, it became pretty obvious that he wasn't going to be here for this match," said Stokke. "So we knew it, and we've been in contact with him, but I don't think he appreciated that he'd been dealing with his wife's labor for four days and then we give him this match going to 1 a.m. his time. It's kind of crazy and out of left field, and something I'm not prepared to deal with, or the guys, but everyone did a good job."

"As important as Ramsey and I like to think we are, they hit every ball," Stokke continued. "So if someone's going to be out, I'd rather it be one of us than one of them. We said if everyone takes care of what they need to do, execute their game plan the best they can, we'll have a chance."

The doubles point set the tone for the entire match, with Kentucky finally taking in after an hour and 23 minutes with a 9-7 win at No. 3.

But despite losing that point, Stokke said the team remained positive about their chances in the singles.

"We put through an awesome doubles point and they beat us," Stokke said. "We got the huddle and said, no regrets, we played an awesome point and we've six points left."

Duke won five of the six first sets in singles, and Jason Tahir brought them even quickly with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Beck Pennington at line 6.  Tom Jomby put Kentucky back in the lead with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Fred Saba at No. 2, then Chris Mengel tied it again with a 6-2, 7-5 win over Kevin Lai at line 4.

Henrique Cunha and Anthony Rossi were locked in a tight battle at No. 1, with the level as high as you'd expect from two players ranked in the Top 10.  Cunha broke for 5-3 in the second set, but dropped his serve, giving Rossi a chance to pull even.  Rossi saved one match point with an amazing running backhand crosscourt pass, but Cunha got another, and this time Rossi could not pull off another difficult shot, and the usually calm Cunha celebrated giving Duke a 3-2 lead by falling to his knees.

"It's a little bizarre situation with Ramsey, but our team had worked so hard the past couple of weeks and we were ready for this tournament," said the senior from Brazil. "It's my senior year, my last chance to play here and I told the guys I'm going to leave it all on the court. I played well--he's a really good player, and it was a really tough match.  The last couple of matches, I'm always thinking it could be my last match, so that gets me a little emotional. And I told everyone, let's win for him, so he can get back and see us play."

Stokke, who had some unofficial coaching assistance from Ramsey's father Stan Smith, who was in attendance, had not heard for certain whether Smith would join the team for Saturday's match with UCLA.

"I think there's a good chance he'll get here tomorrow night," said Stokke. "I haven't checked my phone yet, but we're hoping he'll be here."

With the 3-2 lead, Duke needed just one of the two matches still on court, and it was Raphael Hemmeler who delivered at No. 5, winning the final four games in his 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 win over Grant Roberts.

"It could have gone either way," said Stokke. "Rafa's in a tight third, Red (Michael Redlicki) is in a tight third, Rossi's saving match points and we could have easily lost that match. But all we wanted was a chance, and we won the pressure points, which was great."

NOTE: This post was actually put up at 2 a.m Friday, but for the sake of keeping all the men's matches on the same day, it has been backdated.

No. 9 Duke 4,  No. 8 Kentucky 2

7 p.m. CT – North Courts

Singles

1. #9 Henrique Cunha (DUKE) def. #5 Anthony Rossi (KY)  7-5, 6-4

2. #23 Tom Jomby (KY) def. #43 Fred Saba (DUKE)  6-4, 6-2

3. Charles Minc (KY) vs. #46 Michael Redlicki (DUKE)  3-6, 6-3, 4-2*

4. #121 Chris Mengel (DUKE) def. Kevin Lai (KY)  6-2, 7-5

5. #74 Raphael Hemmeler (DUKE) def. Grant Roberts (KY)  6-3, 5-7, 6-2

6. Jason Tahir (DUKE) def. Beck Pennington (KY)  6-3, 6-2

Doubles

1. #2 Cunha/Hemmeler (DUKE) def. #9 Jomby/Lai (KY)  8-4

2. Hirooka/Pennington (KY) def. #19 Tahir/Redlicki (DUKE)  8-0

3. Rossi/Murra (KY) def. Saba/Semenzato (DUKE)  9-7

Order of Finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (6,2,4,1,5)

* = unfinished