BOSTON- Binghamton University, Boston University, University of Maryland, Baltimore County and Stony Brook University posted quarterfinal wins Friday to advance to the semifinals of the America East Women's Tennis Championship at the Connecticut Tennis Center in New Haven, Conn. Top-seeded Boston U. advanced with a 7-0 sweep of eighth-seeded University at Albany, while second-seeded UMBC downed seventh-seeded University of Hartford 7-0. Third-seeded Stony Brook held on 5-2 against sixth-seeded University of Vermont and fifth-seeded Binghamton provided the day's only upset, 4-3, over fourth-seeded University of New Hampshire. Day 1 Results
Boston U. and Binghamton will square off in semifinal #1, while UMBC and Stony Brook meet in semifinal #2. Both semifinal matchups will take place on Saturday (12 noon) also at the Connecticut Tennis Center in New Haven. The winner of the America East Women’s Tennis Championship, which will be decided Sunday, receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Championship.
Boston University took the doubles point from Albany as Erin Katims and Elisa Glas teamed up to down Courtney Michels and Amanda Brown at first doubles, while Elena deMendoza and Monica Shepherd combined to beat Lisa Fund and Erika Van Zandt at second doubles. Third doubles was an unopposed win for Aimee Charest and Gabrielle Hernandez, also of Boston U., as the Terriers had already won the team point awarded for winning two of three doubles.
In singles play, the nine-time defending champion Terriers were on point. Second through fifth singles (Katims over Brown, Glas over Fund, Charest over Kerry Levis, Hernandez over Van Zandt) were decided by scores of 6-0, 6-0, while deMendoza at first singles downed Michels 6-2, 6-3. Monica Shepherd for Boston U. was credited with the unopposed with at sixth singles.
UMBC earned the doubles point as the Ale Pedergnana?Aimee Lim and Elizabeth Anderson?Adriana Fonseca teams defeated the Hartford pairs of Tara Siegel?Halley Werner and Amanda Lipsky?Randi Taplits, 8-1 and 8-1. With the doubles point already decided for the Retrievers, Tia Kaasalainen and Lana Khvalina led Ana Maria Mora and Lauren Perry 4-2 when the match was ended.
The Retrievers continued to handle the Hawks in singles play, posting wins at second through sixth singles. In order, Pedergnana downed Perry (6-0, 6-0), Lim beat Siegel (6-0, 6-0), Khvalina topped Werner (6-1, 6-0), Fonseca swept Taplits (6-0,6-0) and Anderson was victorious over Lipsky (6-2, 6-0). Kaasalainen was leading Mora (7-6, 4-2), but the match was not finished as the team match had been decided.
Vermont earned the doubles point against Stony Brook, despite failing to advance to the semifinals. The Seawolves' team of Anne Catherine Valle and Georgia Bushell defeated Molly Moran and Alexis Accomando, 8-1, at first doubles before the Catamounts won the second and third doubles to take the point. Vermont tandems of Liz DeCurtis?Susannah O'Brien and Meg Helstowski?Meghan Linehan outlasted Stony Brook's Lauren Conching?Victoria Vasile and Olesya Ianovitch?Ashley Ward teams, 9-7 and 8-6 respectively, to comeback to secure the doubles point.
After dropping the doubles point, SBU won first through fourth singles to take a commanding 4-1 team-point lead. In those aforementioned matches, Valle beat Moran (6-3, 7-5), Bushell swept DeCurtis (6-0, 6-0), Conching beat Accomando (6-1, 6-2) and Vasile beat O'Brien (6-1, 6-4). Vermont's Koenig took fifth singles 7-6, 6-1 over Ianovitch, before Ashley Ward topped Jen Fullerton (6-2, 3-6, 10-6 tie breaker) in sixth singles.
The doubles point was won by Binghamton as its upset-bid over New Hampshire began. The Bearcats Lya Kushnirovich?Janine Sadaka duo beat Megan Breen and Jenna Kafferly (8-4) and the Melis Altinay?Sherri Stern team downed Hallie Erickson and Lensey Dixon (8-1). UNH's Jess Pasay?Tiffany Heineman tandem won over the Vera Popova?Lauren Freel squad, 8-4.
First through third singles were won by Binghamton's Altinay (6-2, 6-0), Kushnirovich (6-4, 6-2) and Sadaka (6-1, 6-1) over Breen, Jenna Kafferly and Hallie Kafferly respectively. UNH was able to win singles fourth through sixth, but the Bearcats advanced on team points 4-3. In those matches, Dixon (6-3, 6-1), Pasay (6-1, 6-1) and Heineman (6-1, 6-2) beat Popova, Stern and Freel.
The America East Tennis Championship utilizes a format of three doubles matches and six singles matches. Doubles matches are played first using eight-game pro sets with a 12-point tie-break at eight games all. The team winning two or more of the doubles matches receives one point in the team scoring. The doubles matches are followed by the singles matches using a best two-of-three sets format. Each singles match is worth one point. A minimum of four points is required to win the team match.