Michigan
Rice
Michigan Knocks Off Rice, Advances to NCAA Second Round
5/7/2021 2:20:00 PM | Women's Tennis
» Michigan won the doubles point and got singles wins from Kari Miller, Bella Lorenzini and Chiara Lommer in the 4-1 win over Rice.
» Lommer clinched the match with a three-set win at No. 2, as the three remaining matches on court were all in the third set.
» With the win, Michigan advances to the second round of the NCAA Tournament to face No. 12 seed and host LSU.
Site: Baton Rouge, La. (LSU Tennis Complex)
Event: NCAA Tournament (First Round)
Result:Â #20 Michigan 4, Rice 1
Records: U-M (18-3), Rice (15-7)
Next U-M Event: Saturday, May 8 -- at LSUÂ - NCAA Tournament Second Round (Baton Rouge, La.), 1 p.m. CDT
BATON ROUGE, La. -- Graduate student Chiara Lommer came through with a three-set win at the No. 2 spot to clinch the University of Michigan women's tennis team's 4-1 win over Rice in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday afternoon (May 7) at the LSU Tennis Complex.
Michigan got off to the early lead by taking the doubles point with a pair of 6-3 wins at No. 3 and No. 2.
U-M's No. 3 duo of senior Bella Lorenzini and sophomore Andrea Cerdan got the break they needed at 2-1, backing it up in the next game at love for a 3-1 lead. U-M won the ensuing game to stretch its lead to 4-1 but Rice answered with two straight games to get one of the breaks back at 4-3. Lorenzini held her serve in the next game and ripped a forehand return winner on match point in the next game to wrap up the 6-3 win.
At No. 2, Lommer and freshman Kari Miller raced out to a 3-0 lead before extending it to 5-1. Already up 4-1, the Wolverines faced a deuce point on Miller's serve, with Lommer getting the volley winner at the net to keep Michigan comfortably ahead. Much like at No. 3, Rice answered with two straight games to trim the lead, but the Owls got no closer than that. U-M took the final game, breaking Rice in the ninth game for the 6-3 win and Michigan's first point of the afternoon.
Miller extended Michigan's lead to 2-0 behind a 6-2, 6-1 win at No. 1. In the first set, she grabbed the early break but gave it back in the fifth game to put it back on serve at 3-2. Miller responded by breaking back, winning the final three games of the set for the win. It was all Miller in the second as she got the break she needed at 3-1 and did not look back in the straight-set win.
Rice got on the board next, winning a straight-set match at No. 4 to cut Michigan's lead in half at 2-1.
Lorenzini came through in straight sets at No. 6 for the Maize and Blue, putting U-M's third point on the board. She struck first in the first set, winning the first two games and keeping the lead throughout in the 6-4 win. In the second, she took advantage of a break midway through for a 4-2 lead. She put the match away on her second match point, ripping a forehand winner down the line to win her third consecutive dual match at No. 6.
The remaining three matches left on court were all heading to third sets, as Lommer and Cerdan each dropped their second sets and senior Alyvia Jones rebounded for a second-set win to force a third.
Michigan quickly gained control at No. 2 and No. 5, with Lommer and Jones each racing out to 3-0 leads on their courts.
Lommer provided the deciding point, getting a 6-1, 4-6, 6-1 win at No. 2. The lefty followed the same script in the first and third sets, jumping out to 3-0 leads and dropping just one game in each set for the win.
Jones was up 4-2 in her second set at No. 5, with Cerdan on serve at 3-2 in her third set at No. 3.
With the win, Michigan advances to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and will face No. 12 seed and host LSU on Saturday (May 8) at 1 p.m. CDT. LSU was a 4-0 first-round winner over Boston University.
Following are match-by-match results
Singles
No. 1 -- No. 57 Kari Miller (U-M) d. Michaela Haet (Rice), 6-2, 6-1
No. 2 -- Chiara Lommer (U-M) d. Victoria Smirnova (Rice), 6-1, 4-6, 6-1
No. 3 -- Andrea Cerdan (U-M) vs. Federica Trevisan (Rice), 6-4, 2-6, 3-2 abandoned
No. 4 -- Linda Huang (Rice) d. Jaedan Brown (U-M), 6-4, 6-4
No. 5 -- Alyvia Jones (U-M) vs. Anastasia Smirnova (Rice), 4-6, 6-2, 4-2 abandoned
No. 6 -- Bella Lorenzini (U-M) d. Anna Bowtell (Rice), 6-4, 6-3
Doubles
No. 1 -- Alyvia Jones/Jaedan Brown (U-M) vs. Diae El Jardi/Maria Budin (Rice), 3-5 abandoned
No. 2 -- Chiara Lommer/Kari Miller (U-M) d. Michaela Haet/Federica Trevisan (Rice), 6-3
No. 3 -- Bella Lorenzini/Andrea Cerdan (U-M) d. Anna Bowtell/Victoria Smirnova (Rice), 6-3
Order of Completion: Doubles 3-2, Singles 1-4-6-2
Players Mentioned
