University of Washington
Illinois
Huskies Move To 4-0 With Win Over Illinois
January 22, 2017 | Women's Tennis
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – After pulling out a huge win the night before, the Washington women's tennis had a quick turnaround this morning but came out on top of a tough match with Illinois 5-2 at the Roberta Alison Baumgardner Tennis Facility.
"Really proud of the team for the effort this weekend," said head coach Robin Stephenson. "Coming on the road and going 2-0 against Alabama and Illinois was a tough task and the girls stepped up to the challenge."
The Huskies had a difficult go at doubles again today, dropping their matches on two courts to surrender the point to Illinois. Katarina Kopcalic and Kenadi Hance were the first to fall, 6-2 on court three, with Stacey Fung and Alexis Prokopuik dropping their match shortly after on court two.
Just as they did yesterday however, the Dawgs collected themselves and turned the match around in singles. After grabbing the clinching win yesterday, Kenadi Hance moved her record to 4-0 in dual matches this year with a 6-1, 6-2 victory on court five. Kopcalic picked up her second win of the weekend in singles, defeating Daniela Pedraza Novak 7-6(2), 6-2 to give UW a 2-1 lead.
"I think we all gave it everything we had this weekend and it was really an incredible environment," said Kopcalic. "This weekend showed me how intense college tennis really is and how much every point matters. Both of our matches against Alabama and Illinois could have gone either way because they're both such strong teams but I think our team dynamics and spirit was what got us the wins."
Facing Louise Kwong on court one, Fung was able to come out on top of a tough first set 7-5, and close out her match with a 6-2 second set. Miki Kobayashi clinched the victory for the Huskies on court three, defeating Jaclyn Switkes 7-6, 6-4.
"We had another tough match today and we all definitely showed our determination and drive on all six courts after dropping the doubles point," said Fung. "I'm so proud of this team and loving every second out on the court with them."
The final two matches of the day went to third sets after Illinois battled back to win the second set on each court. Prokopuik dropped her match on court four but Nour Abbes finished out the match with one last win for UW, defeating Alexis Casati 7-6(2) in the final tie-breaker to bring the final score to 5-2.
"It feels great to keep the momentum going and go 2-0 this weekend," said Abbes. "It's always special to be out there with the team and compete as a unit."
Washington's home-opener next weekend will be Saturday January 28th, when they host a doubleheader with Portland and Seattle. The match against the Pilots will begin at noon, with their contest against the Redhawks scheduled to begin at 4 p.m.
"We are getting better each day and with each match," said Stephenson. "We are extremely pleased with the way the girls are competing and playing at this stage of the season. We have some work to do next week and we are looking forward to getting to play our first home matches next weekend."
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RESULTS
Washington – 5
Illinois – 2
Doubles
1 – No. 35 Abbes/Kobayashi (UW) vs. Kwong/Vias (Ill) 3-5 (DNF)
2 – Baillon/Switkes (Ill) def. Fung/Prokopuik (UW) 6-4
3 – Casati/Pedraza Novak (Ill) def. Kopcalic/Hance (UW) 6-2
Order of finish: 3, 2
Singles
1 –Stacey Fung (UW) def. Louise Kwong (Ill) 7-5, 6-2
2 –Nour Abbes (UW) def. Alexis Casati (Ill) 6-2, 5-7, 7-6(2)
3 – Miki Kobayashi (UW) def. Jaclyn Switkes (Ill) 7-6, 6-4
4 – Madie Baillon (Ill) def. Alexis Prokopuik (UW) 3-6, 6-3, 6-4
5 – Kenadi Hance (UW) def. Ines Vias (Ill) 6-1, 6-2
6 – Katarina Kopcalic (UW) def. Daniela Pedraza Novak (Ill) 7-6(2), 6-2
Order of finish: 5, 6, 1, 3, 4, 2
Players Mentioned
