COLLEGE
WOMEN'S TENNIS FINAL SCORE
NESCAC Championship Semi-final
Amherst 5, Tufts 0
At Amherst, MA
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Doubles
1. Brittany Berckes/Laura Danzig (A) def. Julia Browne/Meghan McCooey (T) 8-6
2. Jill Wexler/Natasha Brown (A) def. Lindsay Katz/Janice Lam (T)
8-5
3. Carlissa King/Caroline Richman (A) def. Jennifer LaCara/Edwina Stewart (T) 8-0
Singles
1. Berckes (A) vs. Browne (T) 7-5, 4-3 (unfinished)
2. Danzig (A) def. McCooey (T) 6-0, 6-2
3. Carlissa King (A) vs. Stewart (T) 6-4, 4-4 (unfinished)
4. Wexler (A) def. Katz (T) 7-5, 6-2
5. Lam (T) vs. Brown (A) 6-4, 2-3 (unfinished)
6. Laken King (A) vs. LaCara (T) 6-4, 3-0 (unfinished)
SOUTH HADLEY -- The Amherst College women's tennis team earned a
5-0 win over Tufts University Saturday afternoon in the 2010 NESCAC
Championship semi-final round. Originally scheduled to be played in
Amherst, Saturday's semifinal matches were moved indoors to Mount
Holyoke College.
The second-seeded and second-ranked Lord Jeffs improve to 16-2
and will face top-seeded Williams College Sunday at 9 am in the
title match. The third-seeded Jumbos fall to 14-6 and will likely
receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Facing Tufts in the conference semifinals for the third
consecutive year, Amherst replicated the dominant doubles play it
displayed in the April 20 regular season meeting with the Jumbos by
carrying a 3-0 lead into singles action. Carlissa King and Caroline
Richman got things going for Amherst by cruising to an 8-0 win over
sophomore Jennifer LaCara (Huntington Station, NY)
and junior Edwina Stewart (London, ENG) at #3,
followed by Jill Wexler and Natasha Brown defeating the #2 Tufts
pairing of first years Lindsay Katz (Baltimore,
MD) and Janice Lam (San Francisco, CA),
8-5.
The Jumbos looked as though they would salvage a point when
junior tri-captain Julia Browne (Old Brookville,
NY) and senior tri-captain Meghan McCooey
(Cumberland, RI) took a 5-2 lead over the Lord Jeffs' #1
duo of Brittany Berckes and Laura Danzig. However, momentum quickly
shifted when Amherst won the next five games to go ahead, 7-5.
Browne and McCooey cut their deficit to one, but the Lord Jeffs
wrapped up the doubles sweep by winning the next game for an 8-6
win.
Danzig was exceptional in her 6-0, 6-2 win over McCooey at #2
singles, and Wexler wrapped things up for Amherst by defeating Katz
at #4, 7-5, 6-2. After Saturday's strong performance, Amherst will
battle archrival Williams for the conference crown for the fifth
consecutive year. The Jeffs have won each of the past five NESCAC
titles outright.
The Jeffs won the first set and were leading the second in three
of the remaining singles matches when play was stopped. Berckes
played some of her best tennis of the season to hold a 7-5, 4-3
lead over Browne in the top singles bout, while Carlissa and Laken
King were knocking on victory's door against Stewart at #3 and
LaCara at #6, respectively. Each of the Kings won the first set
6-4, with Carlissa tied at 4-4 and Laken leading 3-0 in the second.
Brown dropped her first set to Lam at #5 6-4, but was leading the
second, 3-2.
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