March 26, 2008

Results

WACO, Texas -- Northwestern made a compelling argument for the right to remain No. 1 Wednesday with a 5-2 win at second-ranked Baylor. The 'Cats improved to 15-1 on the season and earned their ninth consecutive victory.

The win at Baylor ends the Bears' 37-match home winning streak dating to 2005, as well as the 15-match winning streak from this season.

The Wildcats took two of three doubles matches to earn the point and take a 1-0 match lead. At No. 1 Georgia Rose (Mettawa, Ill./North Shore Country Day) and Lauren Lui (Houston, Texas/Kinkaid) defeated Baylor's fourth-ranked pair in the nation, 8-4.

After Suzie Matzenauer (Tacoma, Wash./Bellarmine) and Samantha Murray (Altrincham, England/Altrincham Grammar) fell 8-6 at No. 2, it came down to the No. 3 match to decide the point. Alexis Conill (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Cardinal Gibbons) and Maria Mosolova (Moscow, Russia/No. 204) battled their way to victory, taking the match 8-6 and sealing the 1-0 lead for Northwestern.

When singles got under way, some of the best individual talent the NCAA has to offer was on display. Eight of the 12 competitors are all ranked nationally, with seven of those falling in the top 50.

Northwestern jumped out to a 2-0 lead when Lauren Lui won at No. 4, 6-4, 7-5. She improved to 12-0 in dual play from that position this season. After jumping out to an early lead at No. 3, Samantha Murray was unable to fend off Baylor's 11th-ranked Lenka Broosova, losing 6-3, 1-6, 2-6.

With the Wildcats holding a 2-1 advantage, fifth-ranked Georgia Rose extended their lead 3-1 for the match with her 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 victory at No. 2. She now stands at 9-1 from No. 2 this season.

The 'Cats clinched the match by going up 4-1 when Nazlie Ghazal (Temecula, Calif./Chaparral) came from behind at No. 5 to win 2-6, 7-6, 6-4. Baylor found some redemption at No. 6 by knocking off Suzie Matzenauer in three sets, bringing the match to 4-2 for the day.

In one of the most entertaining singles matches, third-ranked Maria Mosolova held on at No. 1 to defeat 26th-ranked Zuzana Zemenova of Baylor, 5-7, 6-4, 6-2.

With the 5-2 victory, the 'Cats are expected to maintain their number-one national ranking.

Northwestern returns to action this weekend when it travels to West Lafayette, Ind. to face Purdue at 10 a.m. this Saturday, March 29.

Singles

1. #3 Maria Mosolova (NU) def. #23 Zuzana Zemenova (BU) 5-7, 6-4, 6-2

2. #5 Georgia Rose (NU) def. #26 Taylor Ormond (BU) 6-3, 3-6, 6-3

3. #11 Lenka Broosova (BU) def. #25 Samantha Murray (NU) 3-6, 6-1, 6-2

4. #46 Lauren Lui (NU) def. #62 Jana Bielikova (BU) 6-4, 7-5 Nazlie Ghazal (NU) def. Jelena Stanivuk (BU) 2-6, 7-6 (7-2), 6-4

6. Karolina Filipiak (BU) def. Suzie Matzenauer (NU) 5-6, 7-6 (9-7), 6-4

Doubles

1. #28 Georgia Rose/Lauren Lui (NU) def. #4 Zuzana Zemenova/Lenka Broosova (BU) 8-4

2. #54 Taylor Ormond/Jelena Stanivuk (BU) def. Suzie Matzenauer/Samantha Murray (NU) 8-6

3. Alexis Conill/Maria Mosolova (NU) def. Karolina Filipiak/Zuzana Chmelarova (BU) 8-6

Order of finish:

Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (4,3,2,5,6,1)

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