Tuskegee & Benedict eliminated from NCAA DII Tennis South Regional
The University of North Alabama claimed a 5-0 victory over Tuskegee while Benedict fell to second seeded West Florida 5-0 in the opening round of the NCAA Division II South Regional Championships held in Valdosta, GA & Pensacola, FL.
Tuskegee falls to North Alabama 5-0
Valdosta, Ga -The University of North Alabama claimed a 5-0 victory over Tuskegee in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Tennis South Regional Thursday morning at the Valdosta State Tennis Courts.
The Lions swept all three doubles matches, dropping just two games in the process. At No. 1, Pippa Reakes and Jessica Strucher claimed an 8-0 victory over Kamila Triche and Charlotte Pulliam while Yuliya Zelenskaya and Louise Klasen downed Jill Person and Francine Smith 8-1 at No. 2. Mallory Waites and Arrie Moore finished the doubles sweep with an 8-1 win over over Costanza Aranda and Angela Dixon at No. 3.
UNA closed out the victory with a pair of straight-set victories at No. 1 and No. 2 in singles play. Reakes topped Salama Shelton 6-0, 6-0 at No. 1 while Zelenskaya downed Kamila Triche by the same score at No. 2.
Tuskegee’s historic season falls short of their goal, but finishes the season 22-5. Tuskegee was named the ITA Sportsmanship Award winner for the month April.
With the victory, North Alabama advances to Friday morning’s regional championship match against top- seed Valdosta State. The match will begin with doubles action at 10:00 a.m.
Match Results:
North Alabama (5) Tuskegee University (0)
#1 Doubles: Pippa Reakes & Jessica Strucher (UNA) defeats Kamila Triche & Charlotte Pulliam (TU) 8-0
#2 Doubles: Yuiya Zelenskaya and Louis Klasen (UNA) defeats Jill Person and Francine Smith (TU) 8-1
#3 Doubles: Mallory Waites and Arrie Moore (UNA) defeats Costanza Aranda and Angela Dixon (TU) 8-1
#1 Singles: Pippa Reakes (UNA) defeats Salama Shelton (TU) 6-0, 6-0
#2 Singles: Yuiya Zelenskaya (UNA)defeats Kamila Triche (TU) 6-0, 6-0
#3 Singles: Jessica Strucher (UNA) vs. Jill Person (TU) DNF
#4 Singles: Louis Klasen (UNA) vs. Charlotte Pulliam (TU) DNF
#5 Singles: Mallory Waites (UNA) vs. Costanza Aranda (TU) DNF
#6 Singles: Arrie Moore (UNA) vs. Francine Smith (TU) DNF
Benedict Falls to West Florida 5-0
PENSACOLA, Fla. - The South Region second seeded West Florida women’s tennis team posted a 5-0 victory to start off the 2008 NCAA tournament. West Florida needed just one hour and 14 minutes to power their way into the second round. The Argos swept the Doubles, losing only one game, and then Renata Mattos and Taylor Brewster won their singles matches 6-0, 6-0 to seal the win.
In doubles, the nations 5th ranked tandem of Suzana Cavalcante and Paola Arevalo improved their doubles record this year to 23-1, with an 8-0 win over DeAndra Reasonover and Lauren Smith, who dropped to 15-7 this season in doubles. Taylor Brewster and Lorena Rebolledo won for the Argos at number two doubles with an 8-1 win over Benedict’s tandem of Shani Jones and Mary Hill. At the number three doubles, the UWF team of Renata Mattos and Tatiana Rodrigues defeated Anna Lee Clarke and Ayana Martin, by an 8-0 score. Mattos and Rodrigues improved to 18-3 in doubles play this season.
In NCAA tournament play, as soon as one team reaches five wins, all other play is terminated. While, all six singles match ups start at the same time, once a team has secured victory, the match is stopped. West Florida’s number three and number singles players each recorded 6-0, 6-0 wins, and the match was stopped at that point with UWF winning 5-0. Renata Mattos defeated Anna Lee Clarke, while Taylor Brewster won over Ayana Martin. Mattos, who is ranked 43rd in singles, improved to 15-7 this season, and Brewster improved to 12-9 in singles play.
The Argos didn’t need a win from #3 Suzana Cavalcante, for the opening round win. UWF will face the winner of the Delta State vs. Harding match, which was being played right after the Argos win Thursday morning. West Florida defeated Delta State by a 7-2 score during the regular season, and by a 5-3 score in the GSC tournament. The Argos did not play against Harding during the regular season, or conference tournament. The regional final will take place on the UWF campus at 9:00 am Friday morning, with the winner of that match advancing to the National Championship finals in Houston, Tex., May 14th thru the 17th.
The 16th ranked Argonauts will await the winner of the Delta State vs. Harding match, and play the Regional final Friday morning at 9:00 AM on the UWF campus.
Match Results:
West Florida (5) Benedict College (0)
#1 Doubles: Cavalcante & Arevalo (UWF) defeats Reasonover & Smith (BC) 8-0
#2 Doubles: Brewster & Reboledo (UWF) defeats Jones & Hill (BC) 8-1
#3 Doubles: Mattos & Rodriques (UWF) vs. Clarke & Martin (BC) 8-0
#1 Singles: Suzana Cavalcante (UWF) vs. DeAndra Reasonover (BC) DNF
#2 Singles: Paola Arevalo (UWF) vs. Lauren Smith (BC) DNF
#3 Singles: Renata Mattos (UWF) defeats Anna Lee Clarke (BC) 6-0, 6-0
#4 Singles: Taylor Brewster (UWF) vs. Ayana Martin (BC) 6-0, 6-0
#5 Singles: Lorena Rebolledo (UWF) vs. Shani Jones (BC) DNF
#6 Singles: Tatiana Rodriques (UWF) vs. Paola Lopez (BC) DNF