Two Husky doubles teams move into the Round of 16 with convincing wins.
SEATTLE – Husky senior Denise Dy picked up a pair of wins today to move into the quarterfinals of the ITA Northwest Regional Championships at Stanford’s Taube Tennis Center. Freshman Julija Lukac also picked up a big win in the second round before falling to the nation’s seventh-ranked player in the round of 16.
Dy, who won this singles title in 2009, had to come back from a set down against Washington State’s Elisabeth Fournier in the round of 16, and was able to do just that, rallying for a 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 victory. Earlier in the day she topped Megan Heneghan of UC Davis, 6-0, 6-4. She will play Stanford’s Stacey Tan, last year’s NCAA runner-up, in the quarterfinals.
Lukac, a freshman from Belgrade, Serbia, rolled over 14th-seeded Liudmila Vasilieva of Washington State, 6-1, 6-1 early in the day. She was one of just three unseeded players to make the round of 16. But in the next round, she was unable to overcome Stanford’s Nicole Gibbs, ranked seventh nationally, falling 6-3, 6-0. Sophomore Andjela Nemcevic also was knocked out in the third round, dropping to Tan of Stanford, 6-0, 6-1.
In doubles play, two Husky tandems won to advance to the round of 16, and that was despite UW’s fourth-seeded duo of Dy and Capucine Gregoire suffering an upset loss. But UW’s two other new tandems both won their first matches together. Nemcevic and senior Samantha Smith defeated Fresno State’s Kirpicheva and McQueen, 8-4, and freshman Natali Coronel teamed with Lukac for an easy 8-1 win over a UC Davis pair.
The first major fall tournament for many tennis teams, ITA Northwest Regionals continue through until Tuesday. Winners of the prestigious tournament earn a spot at ITA National Indoor Championships next month in New York.
Washington Women's Tennis
ITA Northwest Regional Championships
October 22, 2011 - Palo Alto, Calif.
Taube Tennis Center
Singles - Round of 32
(3) Denise Dy (UW) def. Megan Heneghan (UC Davis), 6-0, 6-4
Julija Lukac (UW) def. (14) Liudmila Vasilieva (WSU), 6-1, 6-1
(5) Stacey Tan (Stan) def. Andjela Nemcevic (UW), 6-0, 6-1
Singles – Round of 16
(3) Denise Dy (UW) def. (16) Elisabeth Fournier (WSU), 3-6, 6-1, 6-4
(4) Nicole Gibbs (Stan) def. Julija Lukac (UW), 6-3, 6-0
Doubles – Round of 32
Nemcevic/Smith (UW) def. Kirpicheva/McQueen (FSU), 8-4
Coronel/Lukac (UW) def. Davidson/Nguyen-Huu (UC Davis), 8-1
Lamble/McGeorge (SCU) def. (4) Dy/Gregoire (UW), 8-4
