DePaul University
SMU
DePaul Cruises to 6-1 Win Over No. 36 SMU
2/4/2012 12:00:00 AM | WOMEN'S TENNIS
Feb. 4, 2012
CHICAGO - The DePaul women's tennis team won its fifth straight match on Saturday nigh tas it took down No. 36 SMU by a 6-1 score. Playing on their home court, the Blue Demons got out to early leads and held on to improve their record to 5-1 in head-to-head action this season.
"We have lofty goals," DePaul head coach Mark Ardizzone said following the victory. "We're not ranked right now and they are so we want to kind of turn this around. We know we deserve to be in there and we want to just beat all of the teams ahead of us that are ranked."
The Blue Demons came out to do just that on Friday. In doubles play, Kelsey Lawson and Cali Gustafson made quick work of the Mustangs' third pairing of Kris Roberts and Perri Anderson. The 8-0 win moved the Lawson-Gustafson duo to 5-1 this season.
On the second court, Rebeca Mitrea and Patricia Fargas added a decisive 8-4 win over the doubles team of Ashley Turpin and Elena Fayner. Gia McKnight and Jasmin Kling fell 8-5 to Southern Methodist's top team of Edyta Cieplucha and Heather Steinbauer for DePaul's only doubles loss.
The Blue Demon women were the beneficiaries of a lively crowd during their doubles play. Prior to the match, DePaul hosted a short pre-match clinic for participants from Girls in the Game, a nonprofit organization that promotes sports and fitness opportunities and education for girls in Chicago. Over 50 participants cheered on DePaul as the programs came together to celebrate the 26th annual National Girls and Women in Sports Day.
"I really want to thank Vanessa Mizel for bringing the Girls in the Game kids out here," Ardizzone continued. "It was a lot of fun--a great experience for us and I hope a great experience for them. I can't thank them enough for setting it up and giving us an opportunity to give a little bit back."
Following the doubles win, the Blue Demons took to the court for singles play against the Mustangs.
Neumann and Lawson both collected quick wins over their respective opponents. Neumann was the first Blue Demon to finish and downed SMU's Marschall in straight sets, winning 6-0 in both. Lawson followed shortly thereafter as the sophomore won each game of her match over the Mustangs' Anderson.
Mitrea sealed the deciding win for DePaul as she took down Roberts by scores of 6-0, 6-4. Mitrea's win moved her to 15-2 on the season between tournament and head-to-head play. The freshman has won 10 straight matches.
In the remaining singles matches, Fargas defeated Heather Steinbauer (6-2, 6-3) for her fourth straight win. Looking to rebound from her loss in doubles, McKnight battled back from a 5-2 deficit and overtook Fayner, 7-5 in the first set.
"It was tight," McKnight said about the opening set. "Our doubles match was a little tough so I think I still had that in my head."
In the second set, McKnight found her rhythm and earned a convincing 6-2 win. "Once I was able to get used to [Fayner's] pace, I was able to take control of the match."
The longest match of the day, was at the number one position between Kling and Cieplucha. After Cieplucha took the first set 7-5, Kling forced a tiebreak by winning the second set, 6-0. In a back-and-forth tiebreaker, Cieplucha won 10-7 for SMU's only point of the match.
After DePaul's 6-1 win McKnight said, "I know we are definitely excited, especially as a new team to come out and beat a top 40 team. I hope it gives my younger teammates a lot of confidence. I have been here before and ranked wins are always very exciting but I hope it really gets them going."
The Blue Demons hit the road next weekend and take on Wisconsin on Friday at 4 p.m. DePaul stays in Madison, Wis., on Saturday to face off against NC State at 11 a.m. in a neutral-site matchup.
DePaul 6, SMU 1
Doubles
1. Edyta Cieplucha/Heather Steinbauer (SMU) def. Gia McKnight/Jasmin Kling (DePaul)8-5
2. Rebeca Mitrea/Patricia Fargas (DePaul) def. Ashley Turpin/Elena Fayner 8-4
3. Kelsey Lawson/Cali Gustafson (DePaul) def. Kris Roberts/Perri Anderson 8-0
Order of finish: 3, 2, 1
Singles
1. Edyta Cieplucha (SMU) def. Jasmin Kling (DePaul) 7-5, 0-6, 10-7
2. Patricia Fargas (DePaul) def. Heather Steinbauer (SMU) 6-2, 6-3
3. Gia McKnight (DePaul) def. Elena Fayner (SMU) 7-5, 6-2
4. Rebeca Mitrea (DePaul) def. Kris Roberts (SMU) 6-0, 6-1
5. Kelsey Lawson (DePaul) def. Perri Anderson (SMU) 6-0, 6-0
6. Carolin Neumann (DePaul) def. Erica Marschall (SMU) 6-0, 6-0
Order of finish: 6, 5, 4, 2, 3, 1
Players Mentioned
