May 26, 2004
ATHENS, Ga. – Freshman twins Christian Thompson (Las Vegas, Nev./Bishop Gorman H.S.) and Catrina Thompson (Las Vegas, Nev./Bishop Gorman H.S.), ranked 36th, dropped a tight three-set decision in the round of 16 of the NCAA Doubles Championship Wednesday afternoon at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex. The Irish pair was up a service break early in the final set before losing 7-5, 4-6, 6-2 to the 26th-ranked team of Megan Muth and Amy Wei of William & Mary.
“This was a really good match between two good teams,” said Irish head coach Jay Louderback. “I thought Catrina and Christian both played well and competed pretty well, but they just couldn’t keep it going when they were ahead in the first and third sets. It was a good showing for their first appearance in this tournament. This experience, their having played in the NCAAs as freshmen and having gone through these pressure situations, should help in the future.”
With the Thompsons up 5-4, on serve, in the first set, Muth and Wei held, then registered a break to go up 6-5, and served out the set in the ensuing game. The Thompsons got started quickly in the second set, winning four straight games to begin. Muth and Wei would rally, but the Irish pair held on to force a third set. The Thompsons held serve and got an immediate break to lead 2-0 in the final frame, but then William & Mary took over, winning six consecutive games to complete the victory and move into the quarterfinals, where it will face the second-ranked and seventh-seeded team of Kelly Schmandt and Aleke Tsoubanos of Vanderbilt.
Muth and Wei, who beat the Thompsons 8-2 in dual-match play last month, have won 10 of their last 11 and stand 30-10 on the season. The pair upset the top-ranked team in college tennis, Stanford’s Lauren Barnikow and Erin Burdette, in Tuesday’s opening round.
The Thompsons, who ended the season with a 22-17 record, were the first all-freshman team to earn an invitation to the NCAA doubles tournament since 1998, when VCU’s Martina Nedelkova and Andrea Ondrisova gained a berth. The Ram team also won its first-round match in three sets, but fell in the round of 16. Prior to this year, just one Notre Dame freshman, Wendy Crabtree in 1993, had participated in the NCAA doubles event since the Irish moved up to Division I in 1985-86.
The loss concluded the 2003-04 season for Notre Dame. The Irish were 12-12 in dual-match play, reached the title match of the BIG EAST Championship for the ninth consecutive season, and are currently ranked 29th in the nation. The Irish will lose two seniors to graduation, but will return their other five starters for the 2004-05 campaign. Additionally, Notre Dame will regain the services of a pair of starters from last year that missed the ’04 season due to injury, Caylan Leslie (Newport Beach, Calif./Corona del Mar H.S.) and Jennifer Smith (Charlotte, N.C./South Mecklenburg H.S.). Brook Buck (Yukon, Okla./Oklahoma Christian School), who was ranked #1 in the USTA 16-and-under girls’ rankings last year, will join the Irish as a freshman, as well.
NCAA Division I Doubles Championship
First Round
#26 Megan Muth/Amy Wei (William & Mary) def. #36 Catrina Thompson/Christian Thompson (Notre Dame) 7-5, 4-6, 6-2