 |
 Pamela Duran, Richmond |
April 19, 2009
MONROEVILLE, Pa. - Senior Pamela Duran registered a straight-sets victory at No. 1 singles after teaming with Isabel Arana to win at second doubles as top-seeded Richmond captured the 2009 Atlantic 10 Women's Tennis Championship on Sunday with a 4-0 win over defending champion Temple at the Club 4 Life.
The Spiders claimed their sixth A-10 crown, including fifth in the last six seasons, and advance to next month's NCAA Women's Tennis Championship.
Richmond jumped out to a 1-0 lead after capturing the doubles point as Duran and Arana were victorious at second doubles, 8-1, while senior Ashlee Vosters and junior Erin Clark rallied from a 4-3 deficit in to secure the winning point with an 8-5 victory over Temple's Elyse Steiner and Lucie Pazderova at the No. 1 flight. Junior Erin Clark pushed the Spiders' advantage to 2-0 with a 6-3, 6-0 win versus Pazderova at second singles before Duran recorded a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Steiner at the No. 1 flight. Freshman Helen Cunningham's overhead slam on match point punctuated her 6-3, 6-1 defeat of Temple's Anastasia Rukavyshnykova at fourth singles, setting off an on-court celebration by the jubilant Spiders.
"The team has played well all year and the experience of senior captains Pamela [Duran], Ashlee [Vosters] and Xenia [Schneider] really helped us in this tournament," said Richmond head coach Mark Wesselink.
"We focused on getting the doubles point and winning that was huge for our confidence. I am glad we played our best tennis today because Temple is a very good team."
TU senior Felicia Frazier was leading Vosters at No. 6 singles, 7-5, 3-1, at the time the match was decided. The second-seeded Owls were making their eighth all-time finals appearance and vying for their fifth A-10 crown in program history.
|
|
 |
Also on Sunday, No. 5 Charlotte dropped the doubles point but rallied to a 4-3 victory over third-seeded Xavier in the third-place match. Senior Yudeshnee Pillay secured the win with a 6-4, 7-5 victory over Tifanie Treece at second singles.
In the opening contest of the day, eighth-seeded Saint Louis edged No. 6 Massachusetts in the fifth-place match, 4-3, as senior Joe Becker clinched the winning point in fourth singles over Kaitlin Carpenter in a third-set super tie-breaker (10-3).
Final Standings
1st - Richmond
2nd - Temple
3rd - Charlotte
4th - Xavier
5th - Saint Louis
6th - Massachusetts
7th - Duquesne / Rhode Island
9th - Dayton, George Washington
11th - Fordham, Saint Joseph's
13th - La Salle, St. Bonaventure
