W&M Rolls Past Illinois

The Tribe improved to 3-0 on the year with a 6-1 victory over the Illini.

02/09/07 11:45PM

Champaign, Ill. - The No. 25-ranked William and Mary women’s tennis team improved to 3-0 on the season, winning the first of its three-match Midwest road swing, 6-1, over host Illinois on Feb. 9. The Tribe swept the doubles matches, before winning the first five singles matches off the court to claim the team victory.

The nation’s top-ranked doubles team of senior Megan Moulton-Levy and sophomore Katarina Zoricic won the No.1 doubles match, 8-1, over Emily Wang and Bryce Marable. It marked the 13th straight victory for the pair as Moulton-Levy and Zoricic improved to an astonishing 22-1 on the year.

Freshman Lauren Sabacinski and sophomore Barbara Zidek, playing only their second match together, clinched the doubles point with an 8-3 win over Kristina Minor and Momei Qu at the No. 3 slot. The freshman duo of Ragini Acharya and Magdalena Bresson provided the doubles sweep with a victory at the No. 2 position. The W&M pair improved to 5-1 on the year with an 8-4 win over Shivani Dave and Alejandra Mezacuadra.

Moulton-Levy, who is ranked No. 5 nationally in singles, swept Qu of Illinois at the No. 1 position. The 6-0, 6-0 win gave the Tribe a 2-0 lead the match. With the win, Moulton-Levy improved to 16-4 on the year.

The freshman trio of Acharya, Bresson and Carmen Pop continued to show why they were tabbed as one of the top freshman classes in the country. The trio claimed singles victories at the No. 3, No. 4 and No. 6 positions, respectively. Acharya won her seventh straight match disposing of Marable in straight sets, 6-3, 6-2, to improve to 12-4 on the season.

Pop clinched the Tribe team win with her 11th straight victory of the year at the No. 6 slot. The Nijmegen, Holland native defeated Wang, 6-3, 7-5, to improve to a perfect 11-0 on the season. Bresson defeated Minor, 7-6 (3), 7-5, at the No. 4 position for her 14th victory of the season.

Zoricic rounded out the Tribe win with a victory at the No. 2 spot. The Etobicoke, Ontario native extended her career long winning streak to nine with a straight sets victory. Zoricic, who is ranked No. 68 nationally, defeated Dave, 6-3, 6-3, to improve to 16-5 overall.

W&M will battle the nation’s No.1-ranked team in Georgia Tech in Champaign, Ill., on Saturday, Feb. 10, at 10 a.m. The Yellow Jackets are coming off winning the USTA/ITA National Indoor Championship, which included a victory over Stanford, snapping the Cardinal’s NCAA-record 89-match winning streak. The College will wrap up the trip against No. 35 Purdue in West Lafayette on Sunday, Feb. 11, at 2 p.m.

#25 William and Mary 6, Illinois 1
Singles
No. 1 - # 5 Megan Moulton-Levy (W&M) def. Momei Qu (ILL) – 6-0, 6-0
No. 2 - #68 Katarina Zoricic (W&M) def. Shivani Dave (ILL) – 6-3, 6-3
No. 3 – Ragini Acharya (W&M) def. Bryce Marable (ILL) – 6-3, 6-2
No. 4 – Magdalena Bresson (W&M) def. Kristina Minor (ILL) – 7-6 (3), 7-5
No. 5 – Alejandra Mezacuadra (ILL) def. Barbara Zidek (W&M) – 7-6 (3), 7-5
No. 6 – Carmen Pop (W&M) def. Emily Wang (ILL) – 6-3, 7-5
Finishing Order: 1,3,6*,2,4,5

Doubles
No. 1 - #1 Moulton-Levy/Zoricic (W&M) def. Wang/Marable (ILL) – 8-1
No. 2 – Bresson/Acharya (W&M) def. Dave/Mezacuadra (ILL) – 8-4
No. 3 – Sabacinski/Zidek (W&M) def. Minor/Qu (ILL) – 8-3
Finishing Order: 1, 3*, 2