Michigan
Michigan State
Michigan Celebrates Senior Day With Win Over Spartans
4/15/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 25-ranked University of Michigan women's tennis team sent seniors Kara Delicata (LaSalle, Ontario/Sandwich Secondary School), Elizabeth Exon (Irvine, Calif./Woodbridge HS) and Jenny Kuehn (Leipzig, Germany/Sportgymnasium Leipzig) away from the Varsity Tennis Center with a commanding 6-1 victory over intrastate rival Michigan State on Sunday afternoon (April 15). The Wolverines (13-5, 7-1 Big Ten) posted their second straight doubles sweep and wins on five of six singles courts en route to 10th straight victory of the season. Michigan, who has won the last six meetings with the Spartans (11-10, 1-7 Big Ten), remain in second place in the Big Ten Conference standings heading into the final weekend of the regular season.
Junior Allie Shafner (Englewood, Colo./Cherry Creek HS) and sophomore Lindsey Howard (Richmond, Va./Mills E. Godwin HS) remained undefeated at the No. 3 doubles position, earning an 8-0 shutout victory over Marianne Eelens and Christine Milliken to provide the Wolverines with the early momentum. Shafner and Howard have won all five of their matches since being inserted into the third slot on March 30.
Kuehn and sophomore Chisako Sugiyama (Parsippany, N.J./The Montclair Kimberley Academy) won for the ninth time in 10 dual match outings, posting a commanding 8-2 win over Christine Bader and Pascale Schnitzer at No. 1 to clinch U-M's seventh straight doubles point. Kuehn and Sugiyama hold a team-best 14-3 overall record, including a 6-1 mark in the Big Ten.
Delicata and freshman Tania Mahtani (Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif./Palos Verdes Peninsula HS) used a late break to finish off Sarah Andrews and Stephanie Kebler by an 8-6 margin at No.2, completing the Maize and Blue's sixth doubles sweep of the season. Delicata and Mahtani kept their perfect conference record intact (7-0) and improved to 8-1 overall. The pair has not dropped a match since March 16.
Freshman Tanvi Dudhela (San Jose, Calif./Archbishop Mitty HS) supplied Michigan with a 2-0 lead thanks to a dominating 6-2, 6-2 triumph over Milliken at No. 6 singles. After dropping two of the first three dual matches of her career, Dudhela has earned straight-set victories in her last three outings. She holds an impressive record of 9-2 against opponents from the Midwest Region in 2006-07.
The 85th-ranked Sugiyama put the Maize and Blue ahead 3-0 with a 6-3, 6-1 decision over Schnitzer at No. 1. Sugiyama has been victorious in all five of her matches at the top spot this season, and she carries a 10-match winning streak dating back to March 10.
The 84th-ranked Kuehn clinched the team win for Michigan, as her 6-2, 6-3 victory over Bader at No. 2 pushed the U-M lead to 4-0. Kuehn has won seven straight, and she has suffered just one Big Ten loss in eight tries this season.
Mahtani extended her winning streak to 11 matches, using a late charge to knock off Andrews in a super-tiebreaker, 6-4, 4-6, 1-0(2), at No. 4. Mahtani has won all nine of her matches at the fourth position, and she holds a perfect 8-0 record in conference play.
Delicata was also triumphant in a super-tiebreaker, outlasting Kebler by a score of 6-4, 4-6, 1-0(7) at No. 3 for her seventh straight victory. Delicata stands at 14-4 in dual match action, including a 7-1 mark in the league.
Eelens spoiled the overall sweep for U-M, defeating Exon by a 7-6(4), 2-6, 1-0(9) margin at No. 5.
The Wolverines close out the regular season next weekend on the road. Michigan will take on Ohio State on Saturday (April 21, 11 a.m.) at the Stickney Tennis Center in Columbus, Ohio. U-M will then finish up against Indiana on Sunday (April 22, 10 a.m.) at the IU Tennis Center in Bloomington, Ind.
Following are match-by-match results:
Singles
No. 1 -- #85 Chisako Sugiyama (U-M) d. Pascale Schnitzer, 6-3, 6-1
No. 2 -- #84 Jenny Kuehn (U-M) d. Christine Bader, 6-2, 6-3
No. 3 -- Kara Delicata (U-M) d. Stephanie Kebler, 6-4, 4-6, 1-0(7)
No. 4 -- Tania Mahtani (U-M) d. Sarah Andrews, 6-4, 4-6, 1-0(2)
No. 5 -- Marianne Eelens (MSU) d. Elizabeth Exon, 7-6(4), 2-6, 1-0(9)
No. 6 -- Tanvi Dudhela (U-M) d. Christine Milliken, 6-2, 6-2
Doubles
No. 1 -- Kuehn/Sugiyama (U-M) d. Bader/Schnitzer, 8-2
No. 2 -- Delicata/Mahtani (U-M) d. Andrews/Kebler, 8-6
No. 3 -- Lindsey Howard/Allie Shafner (U-M) d. Eelens/Milliken, 8-0
Order of Completion: Doubles 3-1-2, Singles 6-1-2-4-3-5
Q U O T E S
U-M Head Coach Amanda Augustus
On getting a win for the seniors ... "It's a little bittersweet. I really wanted Liz (Exon) to get that win; she was right there. It was nice for the seniors to win this match in front of their families. It was definitely a special day for everyone. The team put together some nice momentos and really made it a memorable day. It was also nice to get a win against Michigan State in the process."
On Michigan's doubles play ... "It was nice to see our No. 1 team get it back together. They played aggressively and were moving a lot at the net. Jenny (Kuehn) really brought her game up a couple notches from the start and really broke the match open. From what I could see, our No. 3 team just played really smart tennis. They really set themselves up and finished the points. They're getting more and more comfortable and confident with each match. It's really going to help us next weekend and heading into the postseason."
On Kara Delicata's three-set win at No. 3 singles ... "She's had two three-set matches in a row, and I'm glad she was able to pull both of them out. Both were matches she was in control of, so she can take away that she knows she can pull out a match out if she loses her focus a bit. She did lose focus a bit today and didn't finish off her opponent. So next week in practice, we're going to work on our situational games and being more aggressive at the start of the second set."
Contact: Marc Ressler (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
