No. 20 Virginia Pushes To 5-2 Victory Against Notre Dame
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. –Senior Meghan Kelley (Falmouth, Maine) clinched the win for the Cavaliers on Friday (April 5), kicking off a senior weekend for the No. 20 Virginia women’s tennis team (15-5, 7-4 ACC) with a 5-2 victory over No. 50 Notre Dame (10-11, 3-9 ACC) at the Boar’s Head Sports Club.
Kelley, the No. 31 player nationally in singles, served out her match at the top of the lineup to take a 6-1, 5-7, 6-3 win over No. 64 Zoe Spence and lock up the match victory for the Cavaliers. Kelley’s match was one of four singles matches that went to a third set. Virginia won all three-set matches.
“First, congratulations to Notre Dame on a gritty performance today in what was a good college tennis match,” said Virginia head coach Sara O’Leary. “They showed incredible determination and made us earn every point. I’m really proud of our resilience and focus after doubles. That was a good win against a very competitive team. We also want to give a shout out to the alumnae who were with us, they boosted our energy and really gave us an edge to push through.”
After dropping the doubles point when the visiting Irish won all three matches, the Cavaliers bore down in singles play and won five of the six singles matches.
Freshman Sofia Munera (Pereira, Colombia) started things off for the Cavaliers with a 6-3, 2-6, 6-2 victory on court five over Bess Waldram. It was followed quickly by a straight-set win on court four from junior Chloe Gullickson (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) over Brooke Broda. After a hard-fought first set, the No. 117-ranked Gullickson exerted control in the second for the 7-5, 6-2 win to push Virginia out to a 2-1 lead in the overall dual score.
Junior Hunter Bleser (New Braunfels, Texas) extended the overall lead to 3-1 with her victory on court six. The second match of the day decided in a third set, Bleser claimed her victory 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 from Zoe Taylor to put Virginia within one point of clinching the dual.
Notre Dame cut into the advantage with a win on court two as Cameron Corse defeated sophomore Vivian Glozman (Bellevue, Wash.) 7-5, 7-5.
Kelley then locked up the victory with her win on court one before freshman Amber O’Dell (New Milford, N.J.) would close things out with her win on court three. O’Dell, who is ranked No. 76 in singles, claimed a nip-and-tuck battle that featured several long rallies, 7-6 (8), 4-6, 6-1 over Ally Bojczuk.
Virginia will return to action on Sunday morning, hosting Louisville at 11 a.m. in the final home match of the regular season. It will also be Senior Day for the Cavaliers with a recognition of two seniors beginning at 10:50 a.m. prior to first serve.
No. 20 Virginia 5, No. 50 Notre Dame 2
Singles
1. No. 31 Meghan Kelley def. No. 64 Zoe Spence (ND) – 6-1, 5-7, 6-3
2. Cameron Corse (ND) def. Vivian Glozman – 7-5, 7-5
3. No. 76 Amber O’Dell def. Ally Bojczuk (ND) – 7-6 (8), 4-6, 6-1
4. No. 117 Chloe Gullickson def. Brooke Broda (ND) – 7-5, 6-2
5. Sofia Munera def. Bess Waldram (ND) – 6-3, 2-6, 6-2
6. Hunter Bleser def. Zoe Taylor (ND) – 6-3, 3-6, 6-1
Order of Finish: 5, 4, 6, 2, 1, 3
Doubles
1. No. 72 Cameron Corse/Zoe Spence (ND) def. No. 63 Chloe Gullickson/Amber O’Dell – 6-4
2. Ally Bojczuk/Zoe Taylor (ND) def. Vivian Glozman/Sofia Munera vs. – 6-4
3. Brooke Broda/Bess Waldram (ND) def. Hunter Bleser/Meghan Kelley – 6-3
Order of Finish: 3, 2, 1