Feb. 20, 2010
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The 17th-ranked Notre Dame women’s tennis team topped No. 31 Illinois, 5-2, Saturday in a tough battle at the Eck Tennis Pavilion.
Notre Dame improves to 6-1 on the season, while Illinois falls to 3-5.
The Irish took an early 1-0 lead after winning the doubles points. Cosmina Ciobanu and Colleen Rielley broke a 3-3 tie and won five straight sets to down Megan Fudge and Breanne Smutko, 8-3, at No. 3 doubles. The eighth-ranked duo of Kristy Frilling and Kali Krisik took the final three sets at No. 1 doubles to top Chelcie Abajian and Leigh Finnegan, 8-5, clinching the doubles point for the Irish and improving to 7-0 on the season.
At second doubles, Shannon Mathews and Chrissie McGaffigan raced out to a 4-1 lead, before the Illini team of Marisa Lambropoulos and Rachael White fought back to pull within two at 5-3, then again at 7-5. Mathews and McGaffigan battled back to win the match, 8-5.
Finnegan tied the match at 1-1 for Illinois as she defeated Kristen Rafael, 6-1, 6-4, at No. 6 singles. No. 23 Frilling moved to 7-0 and put the Irish ahead 2-1 with a 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 win over No. 85 White at first singles, while Ciobanu edged Smutko, 7-6, 6-4, at No. 5 singles.
McGaffigan clinched the win for the Irish with a 6-4, 4-6, 6-1 victory over Abajian at No. 3 singles. #114 Krisik kept her perfect singles record at 7-0 with a 6-7, 7-5, 6-3 win over Lambropoulos at fourth singles. Mathews fell to Fudge, 7-6, 4-6, 1-0, at No. 2 singles to wrap up the match.
The Irish will take on No. 1 Northwestern Sunday at 1:00 p.m. at the Eck Tennis Pavilion.
#17 Notre Dame 5, #31 Illinois 2
Singles
1. #23 Kristy Frilling (ND) def. #85 Rachael White (UI) 7-5, 4-6, 6-3
2. Megan Fudge (UI) def. Shannon Mathews (ND) 7-6, 4-6, 1-0
3. Chrissie McGaffigan (ND) def. Chelcie Abajian (UI) 6-4, 4-6, 6-1
4. #114 Kali Krisik (ND) def. Marisa Lambropoulos (UI) 6-7, 7-5, 6-3
5. Cosmina Ciobanu (ND) def. Breanne Smutko (UI) 7-6, 6-4
6. Leigh Finnegan (UI) def. Kristen Rafael (ND) 6-1, 6-4
Order of finish: 6,1,5,3,4,2
Doubles
1. #8 Frilling/Krisik (ND) def. Abajian/Finnegan (UI) 8-5
2. Mathews/McGaffigan (ND) def. Lambropoulos/White (UI) 8-5
3. Ciobanu/Rielley (ND) def. Fudge/Smutko (UI) 8-3
Order of finish: 3,2,1
–ND–