Fifth-seeded Oklahoma shuts out 12th-seeded Kansas, 4-0, Thursday to advance to the quarterfinals.
April 29, 2010
AUSTIN, Texas – The Oklahoma women’s tennis team advances to the Big 12 Championships quarterfinals for the first time in three years after the fifth-seeded Sooners defeated 12th-seeded Kansas Thursday, 4-0.
Oklahoma (18-5, 8-4 Big 12) controlled the match from beginning to end, winning in every set in both doubles and singles.
“We played some of our best tennis of the year today and got to four points relatively easily,” OU head coach David Mullins. “It was good preparation for our match with Texas A&M tomorrow.”
The Sooners won their 16th doubles point of the season against the Jayhawks behind wins at the No. 2 and No. 3 positions. Marie-Pier Huet and Kristina Radan claimed OU’s first win at the No. 3 slot, defeating KU’s Maria Martinez and Victoria Khanevskaya, 8-2.
Tara Eckel and Maria Kalashnikova clinched the doubles point for OU, defeating Kuni Dorn and Sara Lazarevic at the No. 2 spot, 8-4.
The Sooners quickly won three singles points to clinch the dual and advance to the quarterfinals. OU won all three matches in straight-sets, giving up just nine games total over six sets.
Huet won OU’s first singles point after beating KU’s Lazarevic at the No. 2 position, 6-1, 6-1. Tsertsvadze took the Sooners’ lead to 3-0, defeating Martinez at the No. 3 spot, 6-4, 6-0.
Eckel clinched the win over Kansas after defeating Khanevskaya at the No. 6 position, 6-0, 6-3.
With the win, the Sooners will face fourth-seeded Texas A&M on Friday at noon. OU narrowly lost the last meeting with the Aggies, 4-3, on April 10 in Norman.
“Texas A&M has a slightly different lineup from when we played them a few weeks ago but the girls are ready for the challenge,” Mullins said.
Friday’s match will be the fifth meeting between the two teams in the Big 12 Championships. A&M won the last postseason meeting, beating OU on April 27, 2007 in Kansas City, 4-0.
(5) Oklahoma 4, (12) Kansas 0
Doubles
1. No. 38 Constantinescu/Tsertsvadze (OU) vs. Morozova/Wilbert (KU), OU led, 6-3, DNF
2. Eckel/Kalashnikova (OU) def. Dorn/Lazarevic (KU), 8-4
3. Radan/Huet (OU) def. Martinez/Khanevskaya (KU), 8-2
Order of Finish: 3, 2
Singles
1. Ana-Maria Constantinescu (OU) vs. Katerina Morozova (KU), OU led, 6-3, 5-4, DNF
2. Marie-Pier Huet (OU) def. Sara Lazarevic (KU), 6-1, 6-1
3. Teona Tsertsvadze (OU) def. Maria Martinez (KU), 6-4, 6-0
4. Maria Kalashnikova (OU) vs. Kuni Dorn (KU), OU led, 6-2, 3-2, DNF
5. Kristina Radan (OU) vs. Erin Wilbert (KU), OU led, 7-6, 2-0, DNF
6. Tara Eckel (OU) def. Victoria Khanevskaya (KU), 6-0, 6-3
Order of Finish: 2, 3, 6*
