University of Washington
Illinois
UW Women Defeat Illinois 4-0, Earn Trip to NCAA Tennis Finals
May 13, 2001 | Women's Tennis
May 13, 2001
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SEATTLE -Coach Patty McCain received an early Mother's Day present Sunday from her Washington women's tennis team.
Her Huskies defeated Illinois 4-0 in the Regional Final at UW's Quillian Stadium to earn their first trip to the NCAA Championship Round of 16. The 12th-seeded Huskies (20-7) will meet No. 5 Tennessee, Thursday, May 17 in Stone Mountain, Ga.
The win had special significance for McCain because it is the last match she will see the Huskies play this season. She is due to give birth to her first child in 10 days and will be unable to travel with the team to the NCAA Championships.
"I'm a mother-to-be and this is probably going to be the best Mother's Day gift I'll ever get in my life.," she exclaimed.
McCain, who was recently named the Pac-10 Coach of the Year, has guided Washington into the NCAA Tournament in each of her four seasons. Saturday's 4-0 regional semifinal triumph over Army was the first postseason victory in the program's history.
"We've had good teams in the past that just haven't quite gotten over the hump. To finally get a win under your belt and get on to the NCAA Championships is a great feeling," McCain said.
Junior Erin Boisclair secured the match for Washington with a 6-1, 6-3 win over Eva Choe in No. 4 singles. Boisclair and freshman Erin Hoe rallied from a 3-1 deficit in No. 3 doubles to defeat the Illinois duo of Jennifer McGaffigan and Eldina Fazlic 8-4.
"It's unbelievable to be the one to clinch the match. I just kept telling myself that it's just another point and just another match," Boisclair said about her decisive singles win. "I was looking at the other matches since the first set and was aware that it could get us the win. I like that. I like the pressure."
The Huskies' top doubles tandem of senior Kristina Kraszewski and sophomore Darija Klaic, ranked No. 10 nationally, clinched the doubles point. They defeated Simone Kung and Michelle Webb 8-4. Kraszewski also holds a lofty singles ranking at No. 11. She handily won the top singles contest with a 6-2, 6-3 decision over McGaffigan.
In the No. 2 singles spot, UW freshman Claire Carter did not lose a game en route to a 6-0, 6-0 sweep of Fazlic. Carter is ranked No. 43.
Big Ten runner-up Illinois (18-8) was making its third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. The Fighting Illini recorded the school's first postseason victory in the regional semifinal on Saturday with a 4-2 win over Virginia Commonwealth.
The NCAA women's team championships run from May 17-20. They will be followed by the individual NCAA singles and doubles championships, May 21-26 also in Stone Mountain. Kraszewski and Carter have been invited to participate in the 64-player singles championships. The UW doubles teams of Klaic/Kraszewski and Carter/Ilona Kordonskaya will compete in the 32-team doubles competition.
NCAA WOMEN'S TENNIS - REGIONAL FINAL
No. 12 Washington 4, Illinois 0
Quillian Stadium, Seattle, Wash.
Singles
1. No. 11 Kristina Kraszewski (UW) def. Jennifer McGaffigan (ILL), 6-2, 6-3
2. No. 43 Claire Carter (UW) def Eldina Fazlic (ILL), 6-0, 6-0
3. Ilona Kordonskaya (UW) vs. Simone Kung (ILL), suspended
4. Erin Boisclair (UW) def. Eva Choe (ILL), 6-1, 6-3 * clinched victory
5. No. 92 Darija Klaic (UW) vs. Michelle Webb (ILL), suspended
6. Colleen Gray (UW) vs. Carla Rosenberg (ILL), suspended
Doubles
1. No. 10 Klaic/Kraszewski (UW) def. Kung/Webb (ILL), 8-4 * clinched doubles point
2. No. 26 Carter/Kordonskaya (UW) vs. Choe/Rosenberg (ILL), suspended
3. Boisclair/Erin Hoe (UW) def. McGaffigan/Fazlic (ILL), 8-4
Records: Washington 20-7, Illinois 18-8.
POST-MATCH QUOTES
Washington Coach Patty McCain
"It's not a surprise, it's just that we've had good teams in the past that just haven't quite gotten over the hump. This team is so feisty and we have so much depth this year. To finally get a win under your belt and get on to the NCAA Championships is a great feeling. I'm a mother-to-be and this is probably going to be the best Mother's Day gift I'll ever get in my life. I wouldn't call it a breeze, they are a good team for sure. The way that everybody pulled together, with a lot of emotion out there, they were all really determined to get through this one. We're really excited to play Tennessee. We played Tennessee last year and they barely beat us. We actually had match points on them to win the match in Hawaii. When we saw the draw come out and thought we might get a chance to get through regionals and get a chance to play Tennessee. I try not to think about it because my main thing was just to get them there, that was the most important thing to me. Having Jill (Hultquist) working with me is like having two head coaches. She routinely turns down head coaching jobs to stay with us. It's a wonderful feeling to just step off and make her the captain of the ship. The girl's respect her and they're not going to do anything different with her as a head coach than they would with me."
Washington No. 4 Singles Player Erin Boisclair
"It's unbelievable to be the one to clinch the match. I just kept telling myself that it's just another point and just another match. This is big. It's so huge because we've been working for this all year. I was looking at the other matches since the first set and was aware that it could get us the win. I like that. I like the pressure. We're not surprised to win the regional because we knew we could do it, but now that it's here we're still letting it sink in. Illinois is a good team. They are feisty and they get on you. We all had to play great to stay on top of you. I can't even believe we won yet and now everyone is telling us to get ready to go to Georgia."
