Nov. 2, 2011
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – University of Notre Dame women’s tennis player Shannon Mathews (Birmingham, Mich.) has been selected as the BIG EAST Women’s Tennis Player of the Month for October, it was announced by the league on Wednesday.
On the month, Mathews, a senior captain of the Irish squad, put together a record of 3-2 in singles competition while teaming with fellow senior Kristy Frilling (Sidney, Ohio) to go 5-2 in doubles action. The three victories in singles play included reaching the quarterfinals at the ITA Midwest Regional as well as knocking off #43 Nadja Gilchrist of Georgia, 6-2, 0-6, 6-2, in a first-round matchup at the Riviera/ITA All-American Championships.
In doubles, after the team of Mathews and Frilling got off to a 0-2 record at the All-American Championships, the duo went on to win five consecutive matches at the ITA Midwest Regional to earn an automatic berth into the ITA National Individual Indoor Championships. In the championship match of the Midwest Regional, the Irish pair posted a victory over the top-seeded and third-ranked Northwestern duo of Linda Abu Mushrefova and Nida Hamilton, 8-2.
Mathews, along with Frilling, head to the Individual Indoor Championships this weekend (Nov. 3-6) in New York, N.Y.
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