The fourth Pac-12/SEC Challenge is in the books and the big winner from the weekend was the Florida Gators. Florida had only won one match at this event over the last three years but this year they doubled that number with a win over USC yesterday and today they took out UCLA 4-2. Florida started off the match in a 1-0 hole after UCLA won the doubles point with 6-4 wins at No. 1 and No. 3. The key point at No. 3 doubles came when UCLA’s Max Cressy was serving at 4-4 (40/40). Florida’s Elliott Orkin and McClain Kessler were in control of the point and had an overhead at the net to get the break but Cressy used his quick reflexes to block back the shot and it turned into a lob winner. Cressy and Gage Brymer would break Orkin on the next game to get the win. The doubles decider at No. 1 ended when Martin Redlicki hit a service return winner at 30/40 to give he and Evan Zhu the win.

Florida rebounded in singles by taking four opening sets and in just over an hour the match would be tied at 1-1 after McClain Kessler closed out Joseph Di Giulio in straight sets at No. 4. Kessler cruised in the first set and took it 6-1 and then he went up 5-1 in the second and had four match points when Di Giulio served at 0/40. Di Giulio came back to hold on the no-ad point and then he broke from 30/40 to make it 5-3. Di Giulio held from 40/30 to pull within 5-4 but Kessler would close it out at love to win it 6-1, 6-4.

UCLA junior Martin Redlicki would put the Bruins back in front 2-1 with a straight set win over Chase Perez-Blanco at No. 2. Redlicki broke Perez-Blanco on the no-ad point to take the first set 6-4 and then he went up 4-1 in the second. After an exchange of holds Redlicki broke Perez-Blanco on the no-ad point to win 6-4, 6-2. 

Florida freshman Johannes Ingildsen tied the match at 2-2 with a straight set win over Logan Staggs at No. 5. Ingildsen jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first set and had three sets points when serving at 5-1 (40/15) but Staggs came back to break on the no-ad point. Ingildsen had two more set points when Staggs served at 2-5 (30/40) but Staggs managed to hold on the no-ad point for 3-5. Staggs would break from 30/40 to put it back on serve at 4-5 but Ingildsen would break on the no-ad point to take the set 6-4. The second set started off with four consecutive breaks before Ingildsen held for 3-2 and he’d eventually add one more break to close it out 6-4, 6-3. 

Florida senior Elliott Orkin gave the Gators its first lead of the day after he defeated UCLA freshman Evan Zhu in straight sets at No. 3. Orkin jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first set and he’d add a second break when he broke Zhu on the no-ad point to close out the set 6-2. The second set stayed on serve until Zhu broke on the no-ad point to go up 4-3 but Orkin broke back on the next game to even it at 4-4. After three consecutive holds Zhu found himself facing three match points when serving at 15/40 but the Bruin freshman fought them off to send the second set to a tiebreak. Orkin jumped out to a 5-2 lead in the tiebreak, with a chance to close it out on his serve, but Zhu won the next two to make it 5-4. Zhu netted a forehand to make it 6-4 and then he double faulted to give Orkin the 6-2, 7-6(4) win. 

As Orkin was closing out Zhu at No. 3, Florida sophomore Alfredo Perez was serving for the match at No. 1 against UCLA senior Gage Brymer. Perez went down a break at 4-3 in the first set but he broke back on the no-ad point to even it at 4-4. Perez held for 5-4 and then broke from 15/40 to take the opening set 6-4. In the second set Perez went up a break at 4-2 after breaking Brymer at love and then he held for 5-2. Brymer held for 3-5 which brought us back to where we started with Perez serving for the match. Perez fell behind 30/40 after Brymer hit a big forehand winner but a service winner from Perez brought up the no-ad point which was also a match point and a break point. The two went back and forth but eventually Brymer pulled a forehand just wide and Perez’s teammates stormed the court to celebrate a Pac-12 sweep.

The match at No. 6 singles was abandoned with Austin Rapp and Maxx Lipman tied at 3-3 in the third set. 

Quotes from Florida’s recap

Head Coach Bryan Shelton on winning two ranked matches this weekend…”It feels great. When we set up this four year cycle with UCLA and USC, we knew we’d have to be patient because we were the last team to host this event. I think our patience was a good thing because we saved the best for last. This year being able to bring those teams here, it’s unusual that USC and UCLA make the trek across the country to play.

“I just want to thank Billy [Martin] and Peter [Smith] for coming out here and competing against us in front of our home crowd. I also want to thank our boosters and our fans and obviously our administration, everybody who supports us, Kate Harte, just everyone who has been behind us and helped us get to this point where we’re able to compete at a high level.

“It feels great for our guys to get some validation of the hard work they’ve been putting in, I think that working hard is really important but working smart is even better. I think our guys were starting to work smart. It’s very early in the season, we haven’t even gotten into the conference stuff. We just can’t get ahead of ourselves, we have to just continue to work hard and keep getting better.”

On Alfredo’s match against Gage Brymer…”I think it was important for him. He lost to Gage at the National Indoors in New York in his last match of the fall, and I know losing to him left a bad taste in his mouth. Gage is such a gamer, he just competes so well, so for Alfredo to get that today, he had to dig deep. There were times in that match where he got behind in the first set break, and he just never backed off, he broke him right back, never let him consolidate, and from there gained some momentum. And from there he carried that momentum into the second set and was able to close it out on his serve after going down love-30.”

Senior Elliott Orkin – “This was huge for our team, huge for our confidence. To be a senior and to see how far our team has come and how much the culture has changed over the past four years since Bryan has taken over, it’s really amazing and I’m so proud of my teammates. The way we responded these past two days after losing the doubles point, we came out in singles and played really well lines one through six, so I couldn’t be prouder. Two huge wins for us and for the program, and I’m looking forward to next weekend versus Virginia.”

On how he responded when Evan Zhu started to come back in the second set…. “He started playing really well, I have to give him a lot of credit. He started making a lot more balls from the baseline and he wasn’t doing that as much in the first set. So I really had to dig deep and play solid and play my game, and he broke me to go up 4-3 but I was able to break right back. In the tiebreaker he gave me some openings and I took advantage of those openings and was able to close him out in two sets.”

Sophomore Alfredo Perez – On the two top 10 wins….”It feels really good, all the hard work and coming into practice every day and putting in the work paid off and it feels really good. Beating two top 10 teams feels really good, and it shows the rest of the country that we’re not here to mess around, we’re here to do some damage in the NCAA [Tournament] and play as best as we can.”

On what has been working well for him the past couple of weeks…”Like Coach has been telling us, keeping calm on the court and not going crazy, but at the same time having a lot of energy. Also just fighting for every single point and trusting myself that I’m going to make the right decision and go after my shots, and just compete like an animal.”

#11 Florida 4, #6 UCLA 2
February 5, 2017 at Gainesville, FL (Ring Tennis Complex)
Doubles competition
1. Redlicki/Zhu (UCLA) def. #3 Ingildsen/Perez (UF) 6-4
2. Perez-Blanco/Lipman (UF) def. Di Giulio/Rapp (UCLA) 6-4
3. Brymer/Cressy (UCLA) def. Orkin/Kessler (UF) 6-4
Singles competition
1. #13 Alfredo Perez (UF) def. #11 Gage Brymer (UCLA) 6-4, 6-3
2. Martin Redlicki (UCLA def. Chase Perez-Blanco (UF) 6-4, 6-2
3. #64 Elliott Orkin (UF) def. Evan Zhu (UCLA) 6-2, 7-6(4)
4. #67 McClain Kessler (UF) def. #90 Joseph Di Giulio (UCLA) 6-1, 6-4
5. Johannes Ingildsen (UF) def. Logan Staggs (UCLA) 6-4, 6-3
6. Austin Rapp (UCLA) vs. #98 Maxx Lipman (UF) 6-2, 3-6, 3-3, unfinished
Match Notes
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (4,2,5,1,3)

{loadposition ads}

In the morning match at the Pac-12/SEC Showdown, USC jumped Georgia in doubles by going up early breaks at No. 1 and No. 3. USC’s Rob Bellamy and Jack Jaede would add a second break at No. 3 when they broke Georgia’s Wayne Montgomery from 30/40 and then they served it out from 40/15 to take it 6-2. Within a matter of seconds USC would have the doubles point locked up because its No. 1 team of Brandon Holt and Riley Smith would break Robert Loeb’s serve on the no-ad point to win it 6-4. Loeb had a 40/30 lead on his serve but his partner Jan Zielinski misfired on consecutive volleys.

On Saturday against Florida, USC took the doubles point but fell behind quickly in singles. Today was a different story because the Trojans came out firing on all cylinders in singles and would take five opening sets with none of those five very close (6-1, 6-1, 6-1, 6-2, 6-3).

Rob Bellamy put the Trojans second point on the board with a 6-2, 6-3 win at No. 6 and then 10 minutes later Brandon Holt would make it 3-0 after he won 6-1, 6-4 at No. 2. 

Georgia finally started to heat up in a few spots with Wayne Montgomery getting a split at No. 1 while Nathan Ponwith was serving for the second set at No. 3. Georgia’s Paul Oosterbaan was up a set at No. 4 but USC’s Thibault Forget had just held to go up 5-2 in the second. USC didn’t want the match to come down to a bunch of third sets and fortunately for them it didn’t because Jack Jaede closed out Walker Duncan in a second set tiebreak to clinch the 4-0 win. 

#8 USC 4, #5 Georgia 0
Feb. 5, 2017 // Gainesville, Fla.
Doubles Results
1. Brandon Holt/Riley Smith (USC) def. #54 Jan Zielinski/Robert Loeb (Georgia), 6-4
2. Paul Oosterbaan/Walker Duncan (Georgia) vs. Nick Crystal/Laurens Verboven (USC), 4-4* (30/40), unf
3. Rob Bellamy/Jack Jaede (USC) def. Wayne Montgomery/Nathan Ponwith (Georgia), 6-2
Singles Results
1. #22 Wayne Montgomery (Georgia) vs. #28 Logan Smith (USC), 3-6, 6-3, 2-0*, unfinished
2. #20 Brandon Holt (USC) def. #31 Emil Reinberg (Georgia), 6-1, 6-4
3. #124 Nathan Ponwith (Georgia) vs. #88 Nick Crystal (USC), 1-6, *6-5 (30/30), unf
4. Paul Oosterbaan (Georgia) vs. #114 Thibault Forget (USC), 7-5, *2-5, unf.
5. Jack Jaede (USC) def. #79 Walker Duncan (Georgia), 6-1, 7-6(4)
6. Rob Bellamy (USC) def. Robert Loeb (Georgia), 6-2, 6-3
Match Notes
Order of finish: Doubles (3, 1); Singles (6, 2, 5)

_________________________________________________________________

Northwestern ran its record to 9-0, which equaled the 1989 team’s 9-0 start, with a tough 4-2 win over Duke. The Wildcats took the doubles point and four first sets in singles with two of them coming in tiebreaks. Northwestern senior Strong Kirchheimer got a quick win at No. 1 after he broke Vincent Lin on the no-ad point to win 6-3, 6-1. After Lin lost the point he slammed his racquet to the ground and was subsequently given a point penalty but since the match was over the penalty rolled over to the next court which was No. 2 singles. The match at No. 2 between Duke’s Catalin Mateas and Northwestern Sam Shropshire was in a first set tiebreak and just as Mateas was getting ready to serve at 6-7 the chair umpire from No. 1 came across the court and told the chair at No. 2 that there was a carryover point penalty. The point penalty gave Shropshire the tiebreak by an 8-6 score which had to be deflating for Mateas.

Duke freshman Spencer Furman put the Blue Devils on the board with a straight set win over Ben Vandixhorn at No. 5 and fellow freshman Nich Stachowiak tied the match at 2-2 with a straight set win at No. 4 over a previously on-fire Dominik Stary.

Northwestern senior Konrad Zieba put the Wildcats back in front 3-2 with a 6-4, 7-6(5) win over Robert Levine at No. 3 and then less than three minutes later Sam Shropshire would hold from on the no-ad point on a serve and volley winner to clinch the match with a 7-6(6), 6-4 win over Catalin Mateas.

Other Notable Scores

• #1 Virginia won its third match in the last 48 hours with a 7-0 road win at Louisville. UVA took 12 of 13 sets in singles with only Carl Soderlund pushed to a third set.  
• #12 Oklahoma State got all it wanted from North Carolina State but the Cowboys were able to come away with a 4-3 road win – Jurence Mendoza won the decider at No. 6 in straight sets though his clinch came seconds after NC State tied it at 3-3 with a three set win at No. 5.
• #18 Michigan gutted out a tough 6-1 win over South Florida with Carter Lin clinching the match with a 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 win at No. 6. After Michigan had gone in front 3-1, South Florida had leads on each of the remaining courts but Michigan was able to come back and win all three. 
• #24 Georgia Tech squeezed out a 4-3 road win over Auburn with Carlos Benito winning the decider 6-7, 6-0, 6-3 at No. 2
• Purdue defeated Drake 4-0 with freshman Stephan Koenigsfest clinching the match at No. 4 with a 7-5, 7-6(1) win – each of the remaining matches were in a third set.
• Minnesota improved to 7-0 with a 4-3 road win over Penn – freshman Stefan Milicevic won the decider against Dartmouth on Friday and he did it again on Sunday by coming from behind to win 0-6, 6-4, 7-6(4). Milicevic and his doubles partner Jesse Sprinkel also won the decider in doubles 7-6(7). 
• Vanderbilt defeated Texas Tech 5-2 with freshman Panu Virtanen clinching the match with a 6-2, 6-2 win at No. 6 – when the match was tied at 2-2 Texas Tech had a chance to close it out at No. 1 and No. 2 but Vanderbilt’s Cameron Klinger and Danny Valent won second set tiebreaks and then went on to win in the third set. 
• Iowa came back from 3-2 down to defeat Dartmouth 4-3 with Jake Jacoby winning 7-6(5) in the third at No. 6 and Jonas Larsen winning the decider 6-4 in the third at No. 5. 
• Tulane rocked previously unbeaten Santa Clara 7-0 as the Green Wave won 12 of 13 sets in singles
• South Carolina ran its record to 5-0 with a 7-0 win at Georgia State – South Carolina won the doubles point by winning tiebreaks at No. 1 and No. 3 then the Gamecocks got three straight set wins and three wins in a third set. 
• Cornell improved to 5-0 with a 4-1 road win over Penn State as Chris Vrabel clinched the match with a 6-1, 6-7, 6-3 win at No. 2
• Pepperdine defeated Washington 4-3 with Guilherme Hadlich clinching the match with a 6-2, 1-6, 7-6(6) win at No. 1 – Washington won the final two matches in third sets to make the final score 4-3.
• Alabama knocked off Clemson 5-2 with Mazen Osama clinching the match with a straight set win at No. 1

Women’s Round-Up

In a battle of top-10 teams in Nashville it was No. 7 Ohio State coming away with a 5-2 win over No. 9 Vanderbilt. The host Commodores won the doubles point with wins at No. 1 and No. 3 but the Buckeyes bounced back in singles and took four opening sets at Vanderbilt’s five-court indoor facility. Vanderbilt senior Sydney Campbell picked up a quick straight set win at No. 2 but Ohio State tied it up at 2-2 after Ohio State sophomore Francesca Di Lorenzo and senior Gabriella De Santis won in straight sets at No. 1 and No. 3. 

Ohio State senior Sandy Niehaus put the Buckeyes ahead with a three set win at No. 4 and fellow senior Miho Kowase provided the clincher with a 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 win over Emma Kurtz at No. 5. Ohio State senior Ferny Angeles Paz finished out the day with a 7-5, 7-5 win at No. 6. 

Post-Match Quotes from Ohio State’s recap
“It was an absolute battle today,” Melissa Schaub, Ohio State head coach, said. “Vanderbilt is a very tough team and this was a really tough place to come play. I thought we competed really hard, which is what we are all about.”

Post-Match Quotes from Vandy’s recap
I salute Ohio State, they fought really hard,” said head coach Geoff Macdonald. “They’re a veteran team with four seniors, who all played today. They’re always good indoors and played great, but I’m also proud of our fight. It was a really tight match today and I told the team that we play a really hard schedule for a reason. There is no shame in this loss. We had set points on courts three, four and six. Had we won those set points, we’re maybe winning this match. But we didn’t, and that’s the nature of our tennis format. But today was a great college tennis match.”

#7 Ohio State 5, #9 Vanderbilt 2
Feb 05, 2017 at Nashville, Tenn. (Currey Tennis Center)
Singles competition
1. #1 Francesca Di Lorenzo (OSU) def. #2 Astra Sharma (VANDY) 6-2, 6-2
2. #19 Sydney Campbell (VANDY) def. #41 Anna Sanford (OSU) 6-2, 6-1
3. Gabriella De Santis (OSU) def. #28 Christina Rosca (VANDY) 6-1, 7-6 (7-3)
4. Sandy Niehaus (OSU) def. Georgina Sellyn (VANDY) 7-6 (7-4), 4-6, 6-2
5. #59 Miho Kowase (OSU) def. Emma Kurtz (VANDY) 6-2, 4-6, 6-4
6. Ferny Angeles Paz (OSU) def. Fernanda Contreras (VANDY) 7-5, 7-5
Doubles competition
1. Emily Smith/Astra Sharma (VANDY) def. Sandy Niehaus/Anna Sanford (OSU) 6-4
2. Emma Kurtz/Christina Rosca (VANDY) vs. Miho Kowase/Francesca Di Lorenzo (OSU) 3-4, unfinished
3. Georgina Sellyn/Fernanda Contreras (VANDY) def. Olivia Sneed/Ferny Angeles Paz (OSU) 6-3
Match Notes:
Ohio State 5-0; National ranking #7
Vanderbilt 3-1; National ranking #9
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (2,1,3,4,5,6)

No. 13 Michigan won a top 20 battle at home with a 6-1 win over No. 18 Texas. The Wolverines took the doubles point with 6-3 wins at No. 1 and No. 2 and then they took four opening sets in singles. Michigan’s Chiara Lommer and Brienne Minor were the first to finish at No. 5 and No. 2 but Texas would get on the board with a straight set win from Petra Granic at No. 4. Michigan’s Kate Fahey clinched a few minutes later at No. 1 and Big Blue would tack on two more points with Valeria Patiuk and Alex Najarian winning at No. 6 and No. 3. 

Post-Match Quotes from Texas’s recap
“It’s never fun as a coach to recognize that we were just outplayed today,” said UT head coach Howard Joffe. “Michigan was skilled, motivated and smart. They deserve credit. I wasn’t displeased with our ladies or our tennis. We have a very young team and an inexperienced group that requires more of these viciously competitive matches. I know we will all profit from today, and we will keep getting tougher.”

#13 Michigan 6, #18 Texas 1
February 05, 2017 at Ann Arbor, Mich (Varsity Tennis Center)
Doubles Results – Order of Finish: 2, 1
1. #4 Kate Fahey/Alex Najarian (Michigan) def. Bianca Turati/Katie Poluta (UT), 6-3
2. #29 Mira Ruder-Hook/Brienne Minor (Michigan) def. Neda Koprcina/Petra Granic (UT), 6-3
3. Kara Hall/Valeria Patiuk (Michigan) vs. Anna Turati/Dani Wagland (UT), 6-5, susp.
Singles Results – Order of Finish: 5, 2, 4, 1, 6, 3
1. #20 Kate Fahey (Michigan) def. Bianca Turati (UT), 6-4, 6-2
2. #80 Brienne Minor (Michigan) def. #55 Neda Koprcina (UT), 6-1, 7-5
3. #60 Alex Najarian (Michigan) def. Anna Turati (UT), 3-6, 7-6 (5), 1-0 (11-9)
4. Petra Granic (UT) def. Mira Ruder-Hook (Michigan), 6-3, 7-5
5. #78 Chiara Lommer (Michigan) def. Dani Wagland (UT), 6-4, 6-0
6. Valeria Patiuk (Michigan) def. Katie Poluta (UT), 6-4, 6-4

For the second time in the last seven days No. 10 Duke won a close 4-3 match at home over No. 23 Northwestern. The matchups in singles and doubles were virtually the same and the outcome of each match was exactly the same. Last week Northwestern won the doubles point with wins at No. 2 and No. 3 and on Sunday they did the same. The matchups at 1 through 5 were identical to last week and while Duke had the same No. 6, Rebecca Smaller, Northwestern made a change with Brooke Rischbieth repacing Nina Van Oost. 

Just had been the case last week Northwestern picked up singles wins from Erin Larner and Alex Chatt at No. 1 and No. 5 however Duke would also equal their performance from last week with Meible Chi, Chalena Scholl, Kaitlyn McCarthy, and Rebecca Smaller winning No. 2, No. 3, No. 4, and No. 6. Last week Smaller won 6-4 in the third and on Sunday she won in two close sets 7-5, 7-6. 

I put last week’s box score below Sundays for comparison. 

Post-Match Quotes from Duke’s recap
“There have been so many great players,” head coach Jamie Ashworth said of win No. 450. “We’ve been fortunate enough to have a lot of great players in the long time I’ve been here. It’s a tribute to them. We’ve had good players and good mental players who can win matches like the one we did today, when we’re down and come back. We have that resiliency and belief. That’s something we talk about in our program – you represent yourself as well as teams of the past. For a number like 450, that’s where that comes into play.”

“It was great,” Ashworth said. “She (Rebecca Smaller) was down in the first set as well as the second. She played really smart at the end of both sets, hitting to a lot of targets. She was really cutting down on her errors there. For someone who really hasn’t been in that situation at all in her three previous years here with the match coming down to her, she handled it really well. This is something she can gain a lot of confidence from.”

“I was off to a rough start in the second set,” Smaller said. “I was looking around and lost a bit of focus. I kind of got back to the two main things I needed to work on and what I did well in the first set. I focused on those and that helped me get through it. Of course it gets very nerve wracking when everyone is looking at your court to try and get the win. But when I have the girls right there on my side, I try and make a lot of eye contact with each one. That definitely calms me down. Having the team right there with me gets me through.”

#10 Duke 4, #23 Northwestern 3
February 5, 2017 at Durham, N.C. (Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center)
Doubles competition
1. Kaitlyn McCarthy/Meible Chi (DU) def. #6 Alex Chatt/Maddie Lipp (NU) 6-0
2. Rheeya Doshi/Lee Or (NU) def. Alyssa Smith/Chalena Scholl (DU) 6-4
3. Erin Larner/Brooke Rischbieth (NU) def. Samantha Harris/Rebecca Smaller (DU) 7-5
Singles competition
1. Erin Larner (NU) def. Samantha Harris (DU) 6-2, 6-3
2. #14 Meible Chi (DU) def. #104 Maddie Lipp (NU) 6-4, 6-4
3. #34 Chalena Scholl (DU) def. Rheeya Doshi (NU) 6-4, 7-6 (7-0)
4. #76 Kaitlyn McCarthy (DU) def. Lee Or (NU) 6-2, 6-3
5. Alex Chatt (NU) def. Alyssa Smith (DU) 6-0, 5-7, 6-1
6. Rebecca Smaller (DU) def. Brooke Rischbieth (NU) 7-5, 7-6 (7-5)
Match Notes:
Northwestern 4-3; National ranking #23
Duke 4-0; National ranking #10
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (4,1,2,3,5,6)
Official: Lisa Watkins T-3:02 A-138

#10 Duke 4, #25 Northwestern 3
January 29, 2017 at Durham, N.C. (Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center)
Singles competition
1. Erin Larner (NU) def. Samantha Harris (DU) 7-6 (7-5), 7-5
2. #14 Meible Chi (DU) def. Maddie Lipp (NU) 7-6 (13-11), 3-6, 7-6 (8-6)
3. #34 Chalena Scholl (DU) def. Rheeya Doshi (NU) 6-2, 6-1
4. #76 Kaitlyn McCarthy (DU) def. Lee Or (NU) 6-1, 6-2
5. Alex Chatt (NU) def. Alyssa Smith (DU) 6-4, 7-5
6. Rebecca Smaller (DU) def. Nina Van Oost (NU) 6-4, 4-6, 6-4
Doubles competition
1. Kaitlyn McCarthy/Meible Chi (DU) vs. #6 Alex Chatt/Maddie Lipp (NU) 6-6 (3-1), unfinished
2. #24 Erin Larner/Lee Or (NU) def. Alyssa Smith/Chalena Scholl (DU) 7-5
3. #23 Rheeya Doshi/Brooke Rischbieth (NU) def. Samantha Harris/Rebecca Smaller (DU) 7-6 (7-3)
Match Notes:
Northwestern 4-1; National ranking #25
Duke 3-0; National ranking #10
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3); Singles (3,4,5,1,6,2)
T-4:00 A-157

Rice pulled off the upset of the day when the Owls went to College Station and defeated No. 15 Texas A&M 4-1. Rice won a tight doubles point when Savannah Durkin and Katherine Ip fought off six match points to win the decider at No. 3 in a tiebreak (7-0). Texas A&M served for the match at 5-3 (40/0) and also had two match points when Rice served at 5-6 (30/40). 

Rice won four first sets in singles and Lindsey Hodge, Katherine Ip, and Alison Ho would each win in straight sets with Hodge getting the clincher at No. 2. It was Rice’s first win over Texas A&M since 2000. 

Post-Match Quotes from Rice’s recap
“We learned a lot last weekend and came home with the realization of how close we had come to beating USC. We used that experience today to fight off some nerves at crucial points,” head coach Elizabeth Schmidt said.

“This was a great team effort today, but the most important thing is how we take what we learned today and use it to get better. We’ve got a big match next week in Waco and that’s where our focus is now.”

Post-Match Quotes from head coach Mark Weaver via TAMU’s recap
“I told the girls before the match that I thought Rice was a very good team. I told them this is a top 20-25 level team that definitely will be in contention in the NCAA Sweet Sixteen in May. I did expect the Aggies to win today, but I’m not that surprised that it was a tough match by any means. Rice is a very good team. They have a singles All-American playing No. 3. They have an All-American transfer from Miami playing No. 1. We obviously hit a bit of bad misfortune in the doubles. We made a great comeback at No. 1 doubles against a very good team. No. 2 doubles had a rough day at the office. They’ve had a great season for us. No. 3 doubles, we did everything but win the match. We were up 5-3, 40-love. We had four straight match points, and we had another match point or two at 6-5. That probably took the wind out of our sails a little bit.

“Having said that, the singles things were looking a little rough for a while, although we weren’t that far from mounting a great comeback. Rachel (Pierson) was looking pretty good in her match and Domenica (Gonzalez) was getting better and better in her match at No. 6, and then Rutuja (Bhosale) had a bit of an injury at No. 2. Rice simply just outplayed us. They are a very good team at what they do. They counterpunch very well. In the doubles, they definitely took us out of our game. We definitely play more of the offensive, dictating style. They did a great job of hitting the ball where we didn’t want it or like it. They did a great job of lobbing and keeping us off of our game. That was the story for most of the day. We were trying to take charge of the points, which is what we generally do well, but to their credit, they moved well and kept finding ways to keep the ball in play, so all credit to Rice. They are a very good team.

“We’ve had a great start to the season. We definitely hit a tough one today. We just need to regroup and get over this. Maybe it will toughen us up a little bit and make us a little feisty heading into the National Indoor Championship next week. At the end of the day, Rice has a very good team, and they are going to have a very good season, no doubt about it.”

Rice 4, #15 Texas A&M 1
2/5/2017 at College Station, Texas (George P. Mitchell Tennis Center)
Singles competition
1. #85 Rachel Pierson (A&M) vs. Wendy Zhang (RICE) 6-1, 6-5, unfinished
2. Lindsey Hodge (RICE) def. Rutuja Bhosale (A&M) 6-4, 6-3
3. #110 Katherine Ip (RICE) def. #57 Tina Bokhua (A&M) 6-1, 6-4
4. Macarena Olivares (A&M) def. Fernanda Astete (RICE) 6-2, 6-2
5. #102 Alison Ho (RICE) def. Stefania Hristov (A&M) 6-2, 6-2
6. Domenica Gonzalez (A&M) vs. Savannah Durkin (RICE) 3-6, 6-4, unfinished
Doubles competition
1. #17 Rutuja Bhosale/Rachel Pierson (A&M) def. Lindsey Hodge/Wendy Zhang (RICE) 6-4
2. Alison Ho/Priya Niezgoda (RICE) def. Domenica Gonzalez/Eva Paalma (A&M) 6-1
3. Savannah Durkin/Katherine Ip (RICE) def. Tina Bokhua/Stefania Hristov (A&M) 7-6 (7-0)
Match Notes:
Rice 4-1
Texas A&M 5-1; National ranking #15
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (5,3,4,2)
A-181

Other Notable Scores

• #14 Auburn edged previously unbeaten Michigan State 4-3 with Sparty rallying from 3-0 down to tie it at 3-3 before Auburn freshman Georgie Axon won the decider 7-5, 7-5 at No. 5. 
• #21 South Carolina picked up a 4-1 road at Virginia with freshman Mia Horvit getting the clincher with a straight set win at No. 2
• #5 Oklahoma State remained unbeaten with a 4-1 road win at Tulsa – Viktoriya Lushkova clinched the match with a 6-4, 6-0 win at No. 1
• #8 Cal went on the road and steamrolled San Diego State 7-0 with the Bears winning all 12 sets in singles
• #11 Georgia Tech blanked Tennessee 7-0 with the Jackets winning 12 of 14 sets in singles. 
• #12 Texas Tech went to Tampa and blanked South Florida 7-0 – TT won the doubles point with 6-0 wins at No. 2 and No. 3 and then won all 12 sets in singles. 
• TCU improved to 5-1 with a 4-1 win over Oregon 4-1 as Olaya Garrido-Rivas clinched the match at No. 5 with a three set win.