April 19, 2014
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The University of Notre Dame women’s tennis team finishes its regular season on a 7-0 winning streak after a victory over Syracuse this afternoon. The Irish beat the Orange 4-3 on the road, moving to 15-8 on the season.
“Indoors at Syracuse is a tough place to play,” said head coach Jay Louderback. “The courts are fast, and they have some of the hardest hitters in the conference. Our No. 3 doubles came back from a 0-4 deficit to clinch the point, which proved to be crucial.”
The match was decided by only a point, and as Louderback said, the doubles proved crucial to that margin of victory. Seniors Jennifer Kellner and Julie Sabacinski defeated Rhiann Newborn and Olivia Messineo at No. 2, 8-5. Then senior Britney Sanders and sophomore Quinn Gleason fell at No. 1 doubles to Maddie Kobelt and Valeria Salazar, 8-6. The point came down to the match on court three, where freshman Mary Closs and junior Molly O’Koniewski dug themselves out of a 0-4 hole to beat Amanda Rodgers and Komal Safadar, 8-6.
Sanders and Gleason came back in singles to give Notre Dame two more points. Gleason was the first off the court at No. 2, defeating Rodgers, 6-2, 6-1. Sanders was right behind her at No. 1 with a 6-3, 7-6(2) win over Kobelt.
Sophomore Julie Vrabel clinched the match for Notre Dame at No. 6 singles. She beat Safadar in straight sets, with her second set win coming in a tiebreaker, 6-2, 7-6(0).
“We are excited for the ACC tournament after such a strong finish to the regular season,” Louderback added.
The ACC Championship will begin later this week in Cary, N.C.
–Lauren Chval, Media Relations Assistant
–ND–