April 18, 2009
MADISON, Wisc.; - The red-hot Wisconsin Badgers picked up their third-straight victory today in a 5-2 win over Penn State. The Nittany Lions fall to 5-16 overall and 2-7 in the Big Ten.
Wisconsin completed a sweep of the doubles competition to take an early 1-0 lead in the match. In singles play, the Badgers won two straight to move ahead 3-0, but senior Leyla Morzan (Vancouver, British Columbia) brought Penn State within two with a victory in sixth singles. The Badgers pulled away from there, winning on the next two courts and clinching the match victory. Sophomore Denisa Zobeideh (Weston, Fla.) closed out the day with a Penn State victory in an exciting tiebreaker win.
In doubles play, Morzan and Zobeideh fell behind Katya Mirnova and Emese Kardhordo early in second doubles, 4-1. The Nittany Lion pair fought back and tied the score at 4-4. Mirnova and Kardhordo went on a run from there, storming ahead to an 8-4 win. In the No. 1 bout, Liz Carpenter and Jessica Seyferth opened the match with a 4-1 advantage over juniors Lauren McCarthy (Danbury, Conn.) and Sarah Lotto (Toronto, Ontario). After two straight Penn State points, the Wisconsin rallied to an 8-3 win, clinching the doubles point for the Badgers. In a tight No. 3 doubles match with four ties, freshman Monika Mical (Stalowa Wola, Poland) and senior Dorothy Dohanics (Pittsburgh, Pa.) were edged by Angela Chupa and Aleksandra Markovic, 8-7(1).
With Wisconsin ahead 1-0, the match moved into doubles play. The Badgers extended their lead to 3-0 as Mirnova defeated Mical in No. 2 singles, 6-2, 6-0, and Carpenter overpowered McCarthy on the No. 1 court, 6-0, 6-1. Following in fifth singles, Morzan put Penn State on the board with a straight set win over Chupa, 6-4, 6-0.
In sixth singles, freshman Michaela Stracar (Jericho, N.Y.) dropped her first set to Dana Larsen, 6-4. Stracar and Larsen battled throughout the second set, but Larsen came out with the 7-5 win to clinch the match victory for Wisconsin. With the Badgers ahead 4-1, Dohanics had an early 4-2 lead but dropped a tight first set on the No. 4 court to Seyferth, 7-5. Seyferth carried her momentum into the second set, winning 6-2.
In the final match of the day, Zobeideh grabbed a convincing 6-3 victory over Markovic in the first set of third singles. Markovic responded with a 7-5 win in the second set to tie the match. In a thrilling tiebreaker with five ties and three lead changes, Zobeideh pulled out a 10-8 win to give Penn State its second point of the afternoon.
The Nittany Lions take on No. 1 Northwestern tomorrow at noon in Evanston, Ill. Following tomorrow's match, the Lions will prepare for the Big Ten Tournament which takes place from Wednesday, April 22 to Sunday, April 26 in Madison, Wisc.
Wisconsin 6, Penn State 1
Doubles
1. Liz Carpenter/Jessica Seyferth (UW) def. Lauren McCarthy/Sarah Lotto (PSU) 8-3
2. Katya Mirnova/Emese Kardhordo (UW) def. Leyla Morzan/Denisa Zobeideh (PSU) 8-4
3. Angela Chupa/Aleksandra Markovic (UW) def. Monika Mical/Dorothy Dohanics (PSU) 8-7(1)
Order of finish: 2, 1, 3
Singles
1. Liz Carpenter (UW) def. Lauren McCarthy (PSU) 6-0, 6-1
2. Katya Mirnova (UW) def. Monika Mical (PSU) 6-2, 6-0
3. Denisa Zobeideh (PSU) def. Aleksandra Markovic (UW) 6-3, 5-7, 10-8
4. Jessica Seyferth (UW) def. Dorothy Dohanics (PSU) 7-5, 6-2
5. Leyla Morzan (PSU) def. Angela Chupa (UW) 6-4, 6-0
6. Dana Larsen (UW) def. Michaela Stracar (PSU) 6-4, 7-5
Order of Finish: 2, 1, 5, 6, 4, 3