May 23, 2012
ATHENS, Ga. – University of Notre Dame women’s tennis senior Shannon Mathews (Birmingham, Mich.) saw her NCAA Singles Championship come to an end Wednesday, as she fell to top-ranked and top-seeded Allie Will of Florida, 7-6 (7-5), 6-3, at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex. She concludes her year with a record of 21-10.
The Irish senior battled her Gator counterpart, who entered the contest 17-2 in dual matches, to the tune of a near three-hour match. The two participants took the first set to a decisive tiebreak after each player earned a pair of service breaks along the way. Mathews and Will sat level at 5-5 in the tiebreak, but Will claimed the next two points to take a one-set lead in the match.
In the second set, Mathews fell behind quickly 4-0 before earning a pair of breaks and a hold of serve to pull the score to 4-3. Will, however, earned a break of her own to extend the lead to 5-3 before holding serve to close out the match.
While Mathews saw her singles draw come to a close, she now turns her attention to the NCAA Doubles Draw as she and teammate Kristy Frilling (Sidney, Ohio) take on Stanford’s duo of Stacey Tan and Ellen Tsay in the Round of 32 on Thursday. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m. (ET).
Be sure to check back with UND.com for a complete recap as the Irish pairing looks to advance into the Round of 16.
NCAA Singles Championship - Round of 64:#1 Allie Will (UF) def. #34 Shannon Mathews (ND) 7-6 (7-5), 6-3
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