University of Washington
Army
UW Women Advance to Regional Finals with 4-0 Win over Army
May 12, 2001 | Women's Tennis
May 12, 2001
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SEATTLE -Washington posted its first ever NCAA Tournament victory in convincing fashion Saturday, blanking Army 4-0 in the regional semifinals of the women's tennis championships at Quillian Stadium.
The 12th-seeded Huskies (19-7) meet another first-time postseason winner, No. 31 Illinois which dispatched Virginia Commonwealth 4-2. The regional championship game is scheduled for Sunday at noon on the UW campus. The winner earns a trip to the 16-team NCAA finals in Stone Mountain, Ga., May 17-20.
"It's such a relief to get a first-round win. We were overdue for sure," said UW coach Patty McCain who guided the team into the NCAA Tournament in each of her four seasons. McCain was recently named the Pac-10 Coach of the Year. "It's just been a phenomenal year."
Washington's lone senior, 11th-ranked Kristina Kraszewski, led the way. She teamed with sophomore Darija Klaic to defeat the Army duo of Cheryl Hamilton and Annie Collier 8-1 in No. 1 doubles before posting an easy 6-2, 6-1 decision over Annie Weber at the top singles spot. Kraszewski has already been selected to compete in Georgia at the NCAA singles and doubles championships four the fourth straight season. She would like to compete in the team competition for the first time.
"It's really great to see our program improve like it has. I was there in the beginning when we started off ranked 60th and now we're hosting regionals and we have a chance to go to Stone Mountain," Kraszewski said. "It would be amazing to go to the championships as a team."
The Huskies broke ahead early, securing the doubles point with an 8-4 win by junior Erin Boisclair and freshman Erin Hoe over the Army tandem of Melanie Bundoc and Melissa Sentelle. Washington then swept the top three singles matches.
Junior Ilona Kordonskaya defeated the Black Knights' Collier 6-1, 6-0 in No. 3 singles and UW freshman Claire Carter clinched the victory with a 6-1, 6-1 triumph over Hamilton.
Patriot League champion Army (17-13) was making its third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.
NCAA WOMEN'S TENNIS - REGIONAL SEMIFINAL
No. 12 Washington 4, Army 0
Quillian Stadium, Seattle, Wash.
Singles
1. No. 11 Kristina Kraszewski (UW) def. Annie Weber (Army), 6-2, 6-1
2. No. 43 Claire Carter (UW) def. Cheryl Hamilton (Army), 6-1, 6-1 * clinched victory
3. Ilona Kordonskaya (UW) def. Annie Collier (Army), 6-1, 6-0
4. Erin Boisclair (UW) vs. Ali Rohr (Army), suspended
5. No. 92 Darija Klaic (UW) vs. Melanie Bundoc (Army), suspended
6. Colleen Gray (UW) vs. Melissa Sentelle (Army), suspended
Doubles
1. No. 10 Klaic/Kraszewski (UW) def. Hamilton/Collier (Army), 8-1
2. No. 26 Carter/Kordonskaya (UW) vs. Weber/Rohr (Army), suspended
3. Boisclair/Erin Hoe (UW) def. Bundoc/Sentelle (Army), 8-4 * clinched doubles point
Records: Washington 19-7, Army 17-13.
POST-MATCH NOTES
o Washington, which is competing in the NCAA Tournament for the fifth straight season, won its first ever postseason match. The Huskies meet Illinois in the regional championship, another team that got its inaugural postseason win Saturday.
o Win or lose, Sunday will be the final match this season that fourth-year Husky head coach Patty McCain will attend. McCain is due to give birth at the end of May. If Washington was not selected to host the regional, she would have been unable to travel with the team to another regional site. McCain missed the Pac-10 championships in Ojai, Calif. last week and won't be able to fly to Georgia for the NCAA finals if the Huskies win on Sunday. In her absence, assistant coach Jill Hultquist has been taking on some of the head coaching duties. McCain (formerly Fendick) and Hultquist (formerly Hetherington) were a highly successful doubles team on the professional tennis circuit. They won several professional doubles titles and reached the finals of the 1988 U.S. Open and 1989 Australian Open.
POST-MATCH QUOTES
Washington Coach Patty McCain
"It's such a relief to get a first-round win. We were overdue for sure. It's just been a phenomenal year. The girls have really pulled together and had an exciting year. We just made sure that everyone was prepared through the week to play and to play their best. It's going to be a tough match tomorrow. Illinois has a lot of good players and they are really feisty little grinders. But, I think our girls are ready to do it. It's a wonderful new experience for Kristina (Kraszewski) to not feel the pressure of having to win every single match and knowing that the team can still win if she doesn't. That takes a little bit of the weight off her shoulders. It would be a great parting gift for her to be able to take the team with her to Stone Mountain. It's a very big advantage to be playing at home, mostly from a travel perspective. We traveled so much the last month and it's nice to stay home to play."
Washington No. 1 Singles Player Kristina Kraszewski
"It's really great to see our program improve like it has. I was there in the beginning when we started off ranked 60th and now we're hosting regionals and we have a chance to go to Stone Mountain. I think we have a really good shot tomorrow. For my last year, it couldn't get any better than this, to be playing at home with a chance to win the regional and go to the championships. It would be amazing to go to the championships as a team. Every year I've gone to play singles, I've gone towards the end of the team championships and seen the semis and finals of the NCAAs. It's just unbelievable. To share that with my team would be the greatest experience ever for my last NCAAs."
