Tribe Defeats Maryland, 5-2

Team Sweeps Bottom Four Singles Spots to Seal Win

02/14/07 6:51PM

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - In a Valentine’s Day matinee at the McCormack-Nagelsen Tennis Center, the College of William and Mary’s 12th-ranked women’s tennis squad warmed the hearts of the home faithful by delivering a solid 5-2 victory over the University of Maryland.

The win stands as the Tribe’s sixth-straight to open the dual season, while the afternoon marks the first loss for the 32nd-ranked Terri-pans (6-1). William and Mary has now beaten three-straight ranked foes, including a 4-3 win over top ranked Georgia Tech this past Saturday.

William and Mary started the afternoon off with dominating performances on all three doubles courts, as it swept all three positions and captured what turned out to be a crucial team point. The team’s top doubles tandem of senior Megan Moulton-Levy (Monroe, MI) and sopho-more Katarina Zoricic (Etobicoke, Ontario) stood up to its No. 1 national ranking by powering out an 8-6 win. The Tribe’s freshman duo of Ragini Acharya (Pulaski, Va.) and Magdalena Bresson (Delray Beach, Fla.) handily took care of business on the second doubles court, rolling to an 8-3 victory. Sophomore Barbara Zidek (Orland Park, Ill.) and freshman Lauren Sabacinski (Plantation, Fla.) completed the College’s sweep by turning in an 8-4 win at No. 3 doubles.

In singles play, Bresson and Acharya cruised to straight-set wins on the fifth and third singles courts, respectively. Bresson’s 6-1, 6-0 win was completed in less than 40 minutes. The Tribe’s win was sealed on the fourth singles court, when Zidek earned the victory when Mary-land’s Elyse Steiner was forced to retire from the match down a set and all-square at four games in the second set.

The Terripins picked up its first team point at No. 1 singles, where 75th-ranked Marianne Baker recorded a 6-4, 6-4 win over 59th-ranked Zoricic. W&M’s Sabacinski finished the scoring for the Tribe with a solid 6-4, 6-2 win at the No. 6 position.

The highlight of the afternoon for the Terps came on the No. 2 singles court, where unranked Eleanor Peters defeated Moulton-Levy, 7-5, 4-6, 1-0 (10). Moulton-Levy entered the match as the nation’s fifth-ranked singles performer.

The next action for the College will come on Friday evening, once again at the McCormack-Nagelsen Tennis Center, as the team will play host to 58th-ranked Marshall University. The match is scheduled to begin at 5:00 p.m.

#12 William and Mary 5, #32 University of Maryland 2
Singles
1. #75 Marianne Baker (UM) d. #59 Katarina Zoricic; 6-4, 6-4
2. Eleanor Peters d. #5 Megan Moulton-Levy (WM); 7-5, 4-6, 1-0 (10)
3. Ragini Acharya (WM) d. Michal Amir; 7-5, 6-0
4. Barbara Zidek (WM) d. Elyse Steiner; 6-3, 4-4 retired
5. Magdalena Bresson (WM) d. Maggie MacKeever; 6-1, 6-0
6. Lauren Sabacinski (WM) d. Lisa Miller; 6-4, 6-2
Order of finish: 5, 3, 4, 1, 6, 2

Doubles
1. #1 Moulton-Levy/Zoricic (W&M) d. #44 Baker/Peters; 8-6
2. Acharya/Bresson (WM) d. MacKeever/Amir; 8-3
3. Zidek/Sabacinski (WM) d. Steiner/Miller; 8-4
Order of finish: 1, 2, 3