Michigan
Iowa
Michigan Slips Past Iowa, Earns Berth in Big Ten Final
4/30/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- For the first time since 1998, the University of Michigan women's tennis team will make an appearance in the final match of the Big Ten Conference Championship. The 40th-ranked Wolverines, the No. 7 seed in the 11-team draw, slipped by No. 3 seed Iowa by a 4-3 score in the semifinal round Saturday afternoon (April 30) at the MSU Outdoor Tennis Courts.
U-M (14-10) won the doubles point for the fourth time in its last five matches, then won the necessary three matches in singles to snare the victory. Michigan last advanced to the conference championship final in 1998, when the Wolverines lost to Indiana 4-0 in Madison, Wis.
With the score tied at 3-3, sophomore Elizabeth Exon (Irvine, Calif./Woodridge HS) entered her third set against Hillary Mintz at No. 2 singles with a championship berth at stake for her team. Exon gutted out a 6-4 win in the first set but surrendered the second frame 6-3. She regained her composure and never gave Mintz a chance in the third set, easily winning 6-2 and causing her teammates to rush the court in celebration.
Michigan held the intensity throughout a majority of the doubles play, earning wins at Nos. 1 and 3 to take the first team point. Exon and junior Debra Streifler (Highland Park, Ill./Highland Park HS) won their third straight match of the tournament at No. 3, defeating Mintz and Jacqueline Lee 8-5 to put U-M in front early. Streifler and Exon have been victorious in 13 of their last 15 matches dating back to March 12.
The No. 21-ranked tandem of senior Michelle DaCosta (Huber Heights, Ohio/Wayne HS) and sophomore Kara Delicata (LaSalle, Ontario/Sandwich Secondary) rebounded from a tough loss on Friday (April 29) and claimed a huge 8-6 victory over Meg Racette and Milica Veselinovic at No. 1 to clinch the doubles point for the Maize and Blue.
Junior Nina Yaftali (Westlake Village, Calif./Westlake HS) wasted little time in her match at No. 6 singles, as she overpowered Hilary Tyler 6-0, 6-3 to put Michigan ahead 2-0. Racette gave the Hawkeyes (14-9) their first point with a 6-4, 6-1 upset of No. 65 DaCosta at No. 1.
Streifler stepped up and put U-M within one match of claiming the team victory with a dominating 6-3, 6-3 win over Lee at No. 5. Streifler is now 14-5 against dual match competition and has won 14 of her last 17 matches.
Back-to-back Iowa victories at Nos. 3 and 4 tied the team score at 3-3 and set the stage for Exon's match-clinching triumph over Mintz. Anastasia Zhukova posted a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Delicata at No. 3, while Veselinovic tied things up with a 6-4, 7-5 decision over senior Leanne Rutherford (Calgary, Alberta/National Sports School) at No. 4.
The Wolverines will face fifth-ranked and top-seeded Northwestern, a 4-1 semifinal winner over No. 5 seed Wisconsin, in the championship tomorrow (Sunday, May 1). The match is scheduled for a noon start at the MSU Outdoor Tennis Courts. Michigan dropped a 5-2 road decision to the Wildcats during the regular season (March 26).
Following are match-by-match results:
Singles
No. 1 -- Meg Racette (Iowa) d. #65 Michelle DaCosta, 6-1, 6-4
No. 2 -- Elizabeth Exon (U-M) d. Hillary Mintz, 6-4, 3-6, 6-2
No. 3 -- Anastasia Zhukova (Iowa) d. Kara Delicata, 6-4, 6-2
No. 4 -- Milica Veselinovic (Iowa) d. Leanne Rutherford, 6-4, 7-5
No. 5 -- Debra Streifler (U-M) d. Jacqueline Lee, 6-3, 6-3
No. 6 -- Nina Yaftali (U-M) d. Hilary Tyler, 6-0, 6-3
Doubles
No. 1 -- #21 DaCosta/Delicata (U-M) d. Racette/Veselinovic, 8-6
No. 2 -- Allie Shafner/Rutherford (U-M) vs. Tyler/Zhukova, 7-6 abandoned
No. 3 -- Exon/Streifler (U-M) d. Lee/Mintz, 8-5
Order of Completion: Doubles 3-1, Singles 6-1-5-3-4-2
Contact: Marc Ressler (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
