Virginia Women's Tennis Falls to Duke in NCAA 2nd Round

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May 13, 2006

DURHAM, N.C. – The Virginia women’s tennis team had its season come to an end Saturday with a 4-0 loss to Duke in a NCAA second round match at the Ambler Tennis Center. The Blue Devils advance to the round of 16 next week at Stanford while the Cavaliers finish the season with a 14-10 record.

The Blue Devils (19-7) took an early 1-0 advantage by taking the doubles point. Jackie Carleton and Melissa Mang scored an 8-0 win over Douglas Wink (Greensboro, N.C.) and Rachel DelPriore (Williamsville, N.Y.) at No. 2 doubles. At No. 3 doubles, Tara Iyer and Jessi Robinson clinched the opening point for Duke with an 8-3 win over Amanda Rales (Bethesda, Md.) and Lara Alexander (London, England).

With the Cavaliers needing to win four singles matches to rally for the victory, Virginia was able to win only one first set. Lindsey Pereira (Arlington, Texas) won a first set tiebreaker at No. 5 singles in her match against Clelia Deltour. At the top three spots in the lineup, the Blue Devils won in straight sets to secure the dual match win. Daniela Bercek defeated Wink at No. 1, Carleton downed DelPriore at No. 2, and Mang won at No. 3 against Kristen James (Clifton, Va.).

“I told the team that I was proud of them,” said Virginia head coach Mark Guilbeau. “We all understand that this process is bigger than just winning or losing tennis matches. I believe that changes we made in those processes this season led this team to have success. It is disappointing that the team’s season is over, but there were only 32 teams playing today and we feel good about the level we reached. We congratulate Duke and wish them luck in the round of 16, along with thanking them for hosting a great regional.

“We fully expect to take another step and keep progressing in the future,” adds Guilbeau. “I want to thank everyone who helped us accomplish a lot this season. From the players, to assistant coach Troy Porco, to our support staff, administration, fans, and parents; we couldn’t have the success we did this season without their hard work and support. And we also want to wish our men’s team luck as they continue their run in the NCAA Tournament.”

Two members of the team will conclude their season later this month in the NCAA Doubles Championship held at Stanford University. The team of James and Lori Stern (Ojai, Calif.) were selected to the 32-team field that will compete for the NCAA Doubles Championship.

No. 10 Duke 4, No. 26 Virginia 0

Doubles
1) #33 Zika/Bercek (Duke) led #23 Stern/James (UVa) 4-3 DNF
2) Carleton/Mang (Duke) def. DelPriore/Wink (UVa) 8-0
3) Iyer/Robinson (Duke) def. Rales/Alexander (UVa) 8-3

Singles:
1) #4 Daniela Bercek (Duke) def. #116 Douglas Wink (UVa) 6-1, 6-1
2) #32 Jackie Carleton (Duke) def. Rachel DelPriore (UVa) 6-1, 6-0
3) #71 Melissa Mang (Duke) def. Kristen James (UVa) 6-1, 6-2
4) #88 Tara Iyer (Duke) led Lori Stern (UVa) 6-2, 3-2 DNF
5) Lindsey Pereira (UVa) led #102 Clelia Deltour (Duke) 7-6 (3), 0-0 DNF
6) Jessi Robinson (Duke) led Amanda Rales (UVa) 6-3, 1-2 DNF