Feb. 24, 2007
LOUISVILLE, Kent. -
The No. 69 Auburn women's tennis team defeated Ohio State, 6-1 at the Bass-Rudd Tennis Center in Louisville, Kent. With the win, the Tigers improve to 5-2 on the year, while <?xml:namespace prefix="st1" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"?>Ohio State drops to 5-4. <?xml:namespace prefix="o" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"?>
"This was a very solid weekend for us," head coach Tim Gray said. "We gained a lot of confidence this weekend and we showed that we can get in there and fight. I'm very proud of the team. Their effort was fantastic from start to finish."
AU finished the pair of weekend matches 9-3 in singles and 4-2 in doubles.
The Tigers began the match by winning the doubles point. Melissa Koning and Alex Haney won in a tiebreak for the second-straight day as they defeated Ally Mueller and Julie Blackmore, 9-8(6) at the No. 1 spot. At No. 2, Fani Chifchieva and Whitney Chappell took down Sonia Ruzimovsky and Caitlin O'Keefe, 8-5. Jil Hastenrath and Kelly Adams dropped the No. 3 match, 8-4 to Finucane and Messmer.
Auburn continued to roll in singles, taking five of the six matches. Starting at the No. 1 position, Chifchieva stormed past Blackmore, 6-4, 6-2. Koning took her No. 2 match, 6-3, 7-6(5) over Ruzimovksy, while Chappell staged a comeback to defeat Christina Keesey, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2. Haney picked up her sixth win of the season with a 7-6(7), 6-4 victory over Mueller at No. 4, and Hastenrath pushed past O'Keefe, 7-5, 6-1 at the No. 5 spot. The Tigers' lone loss came as Adams fell, 6-1, 6-2 to Julie Voss.
Doubles
1. Koning/Haney (AU) def. Mueller/Blackmore (OSU) 9-8(6)
2. Chifchieva/Chappell (AU) def. Ruzimovsky/O'Keefe (OSU) 8-5
3. Finucane/Messmer (OSU) def. Hastenrath/Adams (AU) 8-4
Singles
1. #61 Fani Chifchieva (AU) def. Julie Blackmore (OSU) 6-4, 6-2
2. Melissa Koning (AU) def. Sonia Ruzimovsky (OSU) 6-3, 7-6(5)
3. Whitney Chappell (AU) def. Christina Keesey (OSU) 4-6, 6-3, 6-2
4. Alex Haney (AU) def. Ally Mueller (OSU) 7-6(7), 6-4
5. Jil Hastenrath (AU) def. Caitlin O'Keefe (OSU) 7-5, 6-1
6. Julie Voss (OSU) def. Kelly Adams (AU) 6-1, 6-2