April 10, 2012
COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The 18th-ranked University of Notre Dame women’s tennis team brought its two-match losing streak to an end Monday, knocking off 21st-ranked Texas A&M, 6-1, at the Mitchell Tennis Center. Notre Dame improves 15-7 on the year and picks up its fourth win against top-25 opposition.
The Irish earned the victory on the heels of sweeping each of the doubles courts for the opening point of the contest and then claiming five of six singles contests, three of which were in straight sets. The 67th-ranked Irish pairing of Julie Sabacinski (Plantation, Fla.) and Britney Sanders (Ontario, Calif.) finished first for the doubles rotation, knocking off Janine Erasmus and Nazari Urbina at court two, 8-2.
Jennifer Kellner (Smithtown, N.Y.) and Chrissie McGaffigan (Davenport, Iowa) then clinched the point with an 8-5 victory over Sheri Olivier and Lauren Santacroce at No. 3. The sweep concluded with seniors Kristy Frilling (Sidney, Ohio) and Shannon Mathews (Birmingham, Mich.) taking down Cristina Sanchez-Quintanar and Wen Sun at the No. 1 court, 8-6.
In singles action, Notre Dame moved out to a 3-0 lead in the contest after earning wins at courts four and five, respectively. Kellner finished first at the No. 4 court, defeating Santacroce, 6-1, 6-2. McGaffigan followed shortly behind, taking down Olivier at court five, 6-2, 6-3. Texas A&M got its lone point of the match at No. 2 singles as #95 Frilling fell to #101 Urbina, 6-4, 6-3, to shrink the match score to 3-1.
Needing just one more point to clinch, the Irish turned to Sabacinski at court six. The sophomore held off Erasmus, 6-3, 6-4, to earn her seventh dual victory of the season. Mathews was next to finish for the Irish, earning a significant victory over #7 Sanchez-Quintanar, 3-6, 6-4, 1-0 (13-11) at No. 1 singles. The win not only marks the highest ranked opponent Mathews has defeated during her career but was the first loss of the season for her Aggie opponent, who entered the match with a perfect 15-0 dual record.
Sanders closed out the contest at the No. 3 court after taking down #73 Sun in three sets, 2-6, 6-4, 7-5. The victory gives Sanders a team-leading 17 dual victories on the year and also was her second career dual victory over a ranked opponent.
Notre Dame now returns north for its final home contest of the season. The Irish host BIG EAST foe USF Friday at 3:30 p.m. (ET) at the Courtney Tennis Center, weather permitting, with the match representing Senior Day for Frilling and Mathews.
Notre Dame vs Texas A&MApril 9, 2012 at College Station, Texas (George P. Mitchell Tennis Center)No. 18 Notre Dame 6, No. 21 Texas A&M 1
Singles Competition:1. #54 Shannon Mathews (ND) def. #7 Cristina Sanchez-Quintanar (TAMU) 3-6, 6-4, 1-0 (13-11)2. #101 Nazari Urbina (TAMU) def. #95 Kristy Frilling (ND) 6-4, 6-33. Britney Sanders (ND) def. #73 Wen Sun (TAMU) 2-6, 6-4, 7-54. Jennifer Kellner (ND) def. Lauren Santacroce (TAMU) 6-1, 6-25. Chrissie McGaffigan (ND) def. Sheri Olivier (TAMU) 6-2, 6-36. Julie Sabacinski (ND) def. Janine Erasmus (TAMU) 6-3, 6-4
Doubles Competition:1. #5 Frilling/Mathews (ND) def. Sanchez-Quintanar/Sun (TAMU) 8-62. #67 Sabacinski/Sanders (ND) def. Erasmus/Urbina (TAMU) 8-23. Kellner/McGaffigan (ND) def. Olivier/Santacroce (TAMU) 8-5
Match Notes:Texas A&M: 13-3; National ranking #21Notre Dame: 15-7; National ranking #18Order of finish: Doubles: (2,3,1); Singles: (4,5,2,6*,1,3)* - Clinched match Attendance: 416
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