NOTRE DAME, Indiana — Zoe Spence’s straight-set victory over the nation’s ninth-ranked singles player set the tone for a 4-0 Notre Dame win over in-state foe Purdue on Wednesday night at the Eck Tennis Pavilion. After winning the doubles point, the Irish got singles victories from Spence, Bess Waldram and Cameron Corse to secure the victory.
How It Happened
Zoe Taylor and Ally Bojczuk cruised to a 6-2 victory over Zala Dovnik and Ena Babic at three doubles before Waldram and Corse earned a 6-4 victory over Silvia Ambrosio and Amina Mukhametshina at the top of the lineup to clinch the point. Spence and Brooke Broda held a 5-4 lead in the abandoned doubles match on court two.
Spence quickly set the tone in singles, facing ninth-ranked Ambrosio and earning a 6-2, 6-4 decision. Corse followed with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Alex Sabe to make it 3-0 before Waldram clinched the victory with a 7-5, 6-1 win over Seira Shimizu.
In abandoned matches, Broda and Maeve Koscielski had each won the first set of competition, while Bojczuk had dropped the opening set, 7-5.
Silverio’s Story
Head coach Alison Silverio’s thoughts on the match.
On playing at home…
“We feel grateful to be back at home. Going on the road is awesome because we learn so much and being able to play in tough environments is what we want. But being able to come back to Notre Dame and our home crowd and our home courts is always a wonderful feeling.”
On winning the doubles point…
“We’ve struggled in the last couple of matches. It’s not the whole match, but it is one point and it’s an important point. We spend time on developing our doubles so we have to keep trusting the process and trusting what we’re doing in practice. Today it was nice to see some of that hard work paying off and committing to what our game plans are out there in doubles. We’ve got to be able to do that consistently.”
On Spence’s win…
“Zoe Spence has been coming in every day consistently, working hard and she’s really been intentional in practice. There are certain areas in her game that we’ve been focused on and she’s been focused on and really putting diligent work in. It’s nice to see that hard work paying off. For her, it’s back to business tomorrow, just like it is for everyone. Certainly a credit to Zoe and the whole team for coming out with the right mindset today.”
On the lineup…
“We want to continue to give opportunities to the ones that are stepping up and wanting to put it on the line. Up and down the line, just about everyone on our team has earned their spot. They’re working hard and they make our decision with the lineup difficult, but that’s a positive. For us, we’re in the ACC and it’s a tough match week-in and week-out. Who’s going to be ready to put it on the line each time? For now, we’re still working through some things in the lineup and have been mixing some things up, but we will get there.”
On the upcoming doubleheader Saturday…
“We’ve got two days of practice before the matches. Doubleheaders are certainly longer days and it’s about physical endurance and mental endurance and being able to be ready for the first match and bounce back for a second. These next two days we’re going to be smart about the work that we’re putting in and continue to put an emphasis on our doubles. In addition, we’re really proud of them for taking care of the work off the court as well. They’re all in very strong majors here at Notre Dame and they have certainly earned credit with how they’re taking care of business of the court and we’re so proud of that.”
Match Notes
- Notre Dame improves to 26-6 all-time against the Boilermakers.
- The Irish are 3-0 at home during the dual season.
- Notre Dame now owns victories over in-state foes Indiana and Purdue on the year.
- Spence’s win was the first this spring over a nationally ranked player in singles for the Irish. The junior improved to 4-2 in singles this spring.
- Corse has won all six singles matches this spring (5-0 on court four) and is 12-2 during the 2018-19 campaign.
- Waldram now stands at 5-2 during the dual season, including a 3-0 mark at the three singles.
- Waldram & Corse and Bojczuk & Taylor were paired together in doubles for the first time this spring.
Scoreboard
Notre Dame 4, Purdue 0
Feb 13, 2019 at Notre Dame, IN (Eck Tennis Pavilion)
| Singles competition |
| 1. Zoe Spence (ND) def. #9 Silvia Ambrosio (PUR) 6-2, 6-4 |
| 2. Ally Bojczuk (ND) vs. Ena Babic (PUR) 5-7, 3-4, unfinished |
| 3. Bess Waldram (ND) def. Seira Shimizu (PUR) 7-5, 6-1 |
| 4. Cameron Corse (ND) def. Alex Sabe (PUR) 6-4, 6-2 |
| 5. Brooke Broda (ND) vs. Amina Mukhametshina (PUR) 7-5, 2-2, unfinished |
| 6. Maeve Koscielski (ND) vs. Caitlin Calkins (PUR) 6-4, 2-6, unfinished |
| Doubles competition |
| 1. Bess Waldram/Cameron Corse (ND) def. Silvia Ambrosio/Amina Mukhametshina (PUR) 6-4 |
| 2. Zoe Spence/Brooke Broda (ND) vs. Caitlin Calkins/Seira Shimizu (PUR) 5-4, unfinished |
| 3. Zoe Taylor/Ally Bojczuk (ND) def. Zala Dovnik/Ena Babic (PUR) 6-2 |
| Match Notes |
| Purdue 5-2 |
| Notre Dame 5-2 |
| Order of finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (1,4,3) |
| T-2:11 A-119 |
Up Next
The Irish play a pair of matches on Saturday, Feb. 16, at the Eck Tennis Pavilion. First, Notre Dame takes on Michigan State at 10 a.m., before the Irish will face Wright State at 5 p.m. (note: the Wright State match is a change from the originally scheduled time). Admission is free and both matches can be seen live at UND.com/tennisstream.