April 24, 1999

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The 10th-ranked and top-seeded Notre Dame women’s tennis team won the doubles point and won three singles matches to beat 73rd-ranked and fourth-seeded Syracuse 4-0 on Saturday at the Neil Schiff Tennis Complex at the University of Miami to advance to the final of the BIG EAST championship. The Irish improve to 21-6 with the win and will face 22nd-ranked and second-seeded Miami in Sundays championship match at 12:00 p.m., marking the fourth consecutive year the Irish and the Hurricanes have met for the title.

The Irish, playing the same format as mens tennis, won the doubles point with wins at Nos. 2 and 3 doubles. Freshman Lindsey Green and junior Kelly Zalinski beat Zuzanna Borucka and Katie Thompson 8-2 at No. 3 doubles. Senior Marisa Velasco and freshman Becky Varnum clinched the point by beating Miki Kanemitsu and Michelle Neveklovska 8-4 at No. 2 doubles. The seventh-ranked team of Michelle Dasso and Jennifer Hall led 7-5 when their No. 1 doubles match was abandoned.

Notre Dame played the singles matches without 56th-ranked Jennifer Hall, marking the first time all season that Dasso, Hall, Velasco and Varnum did not play Nos. 1-4 singles. Velasco gave the Irish a 2-0 lead in her first match of the season at No. 2 singles with a 6-1, 6-4 win over Kanemitsu. Varnum, playing at No. 3 singles also for the first time this season, then beat Anna Khvalina 6-3, 6-2 to put Notre Dame ahead 3-0.

The Irish then were forced to rally after dropping the first set in the four remaining singles matches. Playing in her first singles match since April 9, Green rallied to send Notre Dame to its fourth consecutive BIG EAST title match with her 3-6, 6-4, 6-0 win over Borucka at No. 5 singles.

In the other singles matches which were abandoned after Green clinched the win, sophomore Kim Guy saved match points at 4-5 in the second set and led 6-5 in the second set after dropping the first set 6-4 at No. 6 singles. Zalinski was knotted at 3-3 in the first set against Neveklovska at No. 4 singles. Eighth-ranked Dasso was serving for the second set at 5-4 after dropping the first set 6-4 to Shareen Lai.

#10 NOTRE DAME 4, #73 SYRACUSE 0
Singles
No. 1: #8 Michelle Dasso (ND) vs. Shareen Lai (SU) 4-6, 5-4, abandoned
No. 2: Marisa Velasco (ND) def. Miki Kanemitsu (SU) 6-1, 6-4
No. 3: #69 Becky Varnum (ND) def. Anna Khvalina (SU) 6-3, 6-2
No. 4: Kelly Zalinski (ND) vs. Michelle Neveklovska (SU) 3-6, 6-2, 3-3, abandoned
No. 5: Lindsey Green (ND) def. Zuzanna Borucka (SU) 3-6, 6-4, 6-0
No. 6: Kim Guy (ND) vs. Katie Thompson (SU) 4-6, 6-5, abandoned

Doubles
No. 1: #7 Dasso/Jennifer Hall (ND) vs. Khvalina/Lai (RU) 7-5, abandoned
No. 2: Varnum/Velasco (ND) def. Kanemitsu/Neveklovska (SU) 8-4
No. 3: Green/Zalinski (ND) def. Borucka/Thompson (SU) 8-2