NCAA Championships Bracket

May 15, 2008

Results

TULSA, Okla. -- Top-seeded Northwestern will advance to the quarterfinal round after a 4-1 victory over 16th-seeded Fresno State Thursday. With just eight teams remaining in the quest for a national title, the Wildcats will face California in the next round at noon Saturday, May 17.

Northwestern is competing in the quarterfinals for the second time in three seasons. In 2006, the 'Cats fell to USC in a quarterfinal match. As a team, Northwestern has reached the quarterfinal round on three occasions, and will be seeking its first semifinal appearance.

The Wildcats swept the doubles point from Fresno State and earned a 1-0 match advantage heading into singles play. At No. 3, Maria Mosolova (Moscow, Russia/No. 204) and Nazlie Ghazal (Temecula, Calif./Chaparral) cruised to an 8-2 victory over Danon Beatty and Jacqueline Haskett, setting the early tone for the 'Cats.

A short time later, Samantha Murray (Altrincham, England/Altrincham Grammar) and Suzie Matzenauer (Tacoma, Wash./Bellermine) secured the doubles point for Northwestern with an 8-5 win over Renata Kucerkova and Anastasia Petukhova. The match at No. 1 featuring Georgia Rose (Mettawa, Ill./North Shore Country Day) and Lauren Lui (Houston, Texas/Kinkaid) was abandoned.

With the momentum in their favor, the 'Cats took a 2-0 match advantage when Matzenauer continued her domination from No. 6. A straight-set victory over Danon Beatty, 6-2, 6-3, improved Matzenauer to 27-2 in dual competition this season.

Northwestern went up 3-0 when Mosolova defeated Melanie Gloria, 6-3, 6-2. Fifth-ranked Mosolova improved to a team-best 38-4 overall while picking up her 14th-consecutive match victory. Rose then fell in a tight match to Anastasia Petukhova 6-4, 6-4, to close the margin to a 3-1 Northwestern match advantage.

Lui fought with determination and was able to clinch the match for Wildcats, 4-1, with her 7-6, 6-2 win over Tinesta Rowe. Lui extended her team-high winning streak to 19 matches and improves to a perfect 22-0 from No. 4 this season.

Northwestern returns to action at noon Saturday, May 17, when it meets California, which dispatched Duke today, in the quarterfinal round. In their previous meeting this season, the Wildcats defeated the Golden Bears 4-0 during the National Indoor Championships in February.

The NCAA Championships are taking place at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center on the campus of the University of Tulsa. The team championship runs May 15-20, with the singles and doubles championships being held at the same venue, May 21-26. For additional tournament information, including brackets, live stats, video and statistics, please visit Tulsa's Official championship homepage.

Singles competition
1. Maria Mosolova (NU) def. Melanie Gloria (CSUF) 6-3, 6-2
2. Anastasia Petukhova (CSUF) def. Georgia Rose (NU) 6-4, 6-4
3. Samantha Murray (NU) vs. Renata Kucerkova (CSUF) 6-7, 5-4, unfinished
4. Lauren Lui (NU) def. Tinesta Rowe (CSUF) 7-6 (7-4), 6-2
5. Nazlie Ghazal (NU) vs. Jacqueline Haskett (CSUF) 6-3, 4-6, unfinished
6. Suzie Matzenauer (NU) def. Danon Beatty (CSUF) 6-2, 6-3

Doubles competition
1. Melanie Gloria/Tinesta Rowe (CSUF) def. Georgia Rose/Lauren Lui (NU) 5-4
2. Samantha Murray/Suzie Matzenauer (NU) def. Renata Kucerkova/Anastasia Petukhova (CSUF) 8-5
3. Maria Mosolova/Nazlie Ghazal (NU) def. Danon Beatty/Jacqueline Haskett (CSUF) 8-2

Match Notes
Fresno State 22-7; National ranking #16
Northwestern 28-1; National ranking #1
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (6,1,2,4)
NCAA Third Round (Round of 16)