Michigan
Notre Dame
Wolverines Lose Close Match to No. 13 Notre Dame
2/7/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Feb. 7, 2010
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Varsity Tennis Center)
Score: #13 Notre Dame 4, #13 Michigan 3
Records: U-M (4-1), Notre Dame (5-1)
Attendance: 297
Next U-M Match: Friday, Feb. 12 -- vs. Florida at ITA National Indoor Team Championships (Madison, Wis.), 9 a.m. CST
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Despite winning the doubles point and taking an early 2-0 lead, the No. 16-ranked University of Michigan women's tennis team dropped a close 4-3 decision to No. 13 Notre Dame on Sunday (Feb. 7) at the Varsity Tennis Center.
The deciding match came at the No. 3 singles position, where junior Rika Tatsuno (Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif./Palos Verdes Peninsula) battled back in the second set to force a third and deciding set before falling to Chrissie McGaffigan, 7-6, 5-7, 6-0. Tatsuno fell behind 5-4 in the second before reeling off three consecutive wins to send the match to a third set.
The Wolverines grabbed their fifth consecutive doubles point with wins at the No. 2 and 3 positions. After splitting the first two matches (No. 1 and 3), the Wolverines pulled out the No. 2 match in dramatic fashion. Tied 6-6, the Michigan duo of Whitney Taney (Edina, Minn./Edina) and Tatsuno earned a break to go up 7-6, allowing Michigan to serve for the match.
The Wolverines capitalized on the opportunity, using Tatsuno's serve up the middle and Taney's volley down the left side to clinch the match and doubles point for U-M. In the first finishing match of the afternoon, freshman Mimi Nguyen (Long Beach, Calif./Millikan) and sophomore Michelle Sulahian (Valley Glen, Calif./Cambell Hall School) went up 3-0 early en route to an 8-4 win at No. 3.
In singles action, Sulahian gave the Wolverines a 2-0 lead with her eighth consecutive win, defeating Colleen Reilley in straight sets (6-4, 6-2) at the No. 6 spot. Notre Dame took the next two singles matches at the No. 1 and No. 4 positions to tie the match at 2-2.
Taney followed up with her third consecutive win to give U-M a 3-2 advantage, defeating Cosmina Ciobanu, 7-6, 3-6, 6-3, after taking an early 4-0 advantage in the third set. The Michigan lead did not last long, however, as Mahtani dropped a three-set decision (2-6, 6-4, 6-4) to Shannon Matthews to tie the match at 3-3, setting up the decisive match at No. 3 singles.
Next up for the Wolverines is the first-ever trip to the ITA National Indoor Team Championships Friday through Monday (Feb. 12-15) in Madison, Wis. U-M will first face No. 7 Florida on Friday (Feb. 12) at 9 a.m. CST.
Following are match-by-match results:
Singles
No. 1 -- No. 30 Kristy Frilling (ND) def. No. 36 Denise Muresan (U-M), 6-1, 6-4
No. 2 -- Shannon Matthews (ND) def. Tania Mahtani (U-M), 2-6, 6-4, 6-4
No. 3 -- Chrissie McGaffigan (ND) def. Rika Tatsuno (U-M), 7-6, 5-7, 6-0
No. 4 -- Kali Krisik (ND) def. Mimi Nguyen (U-M), 6-2, 6-4
No. 5 -- Whitney Taney (U-M) def. Cosmina Ciobanu (ND), 7-6, 3-6, 6-3
No. 6 -- Michelle Sulahian (U-M) def. Colleen Rielley (ND), 6-4, 6-2
Doubles
No. 1 -- No. 12 Frilling/Krisik (ND) def. Muresan/Mahtani (U-M), 8-4
No. 2 -- Taney/Tatsuno (U-M) def. Ciobanu/McGaffigan (ND), 8-6
No. 3 -- Nguyen/Sulahian (U-M) def. Matthews/Rielley (ND), 8-4
Order of Completion: Doubles 3-1-2; Singles 6-1-4-5-2-3
N O T E S
• The Wolverines have won the doubles point in all five matches this season.
• U-M has not dropped a No. 2 or No. 3 doubles match during the 2010 season.
• Notre Dame is the third ranked opponent Michigan has faced this season. U-M defeated then-No. 16 South Carolina (Jan. 29) and then-No. 18 Arkansas (Jan. 30).
• Mimi Nguyen moved up to the No. 4 spot in singles for the first time in her career. She has a 1-0 mark at No. 6, a 3-0 record at No. 5 and an 0-1 mark at No. 4.
• Michelle Sulahian remained perfect in dual-match play with a 5-0 record.
Contact: Sarah VanMetre (734) 763-4423
