Oct. 26, 2004
EVANSTON, Ill. - Five weeks and three tournaments into her college career, freshman Audra Cohen (Plantation, Fla./St. Thomas Aquinas) has compiled an unblemished 19-0 record, knocked off the No. 1 player in the country -- junior Cristelle Grier (Epsom, England/Putney) -- three times, and come home with three first-place trophies. Not bad, for a freshman.
Cohen's latest win came against Grier (6-2, 3-6, 6-0) in the finals of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Midwest Regional Championships Tuesday, Oct. 26 at Northwestern's Combe Tennis Center.
Cohen -- seeded No. 1 in the championships -- breezed through the first set, winning 6-2. But Grier -- seeded second -- settled into a groove in the second set, winning the first two games with the kind of quickness and precision hitting that is a testament to her No. 1 ranking. Grier confidently continued through the second set, winning 6-3. It was the first time Grier had won a set against her teammate.
The third set was all Cohen though, as the freshman shut out her teammate 6-0 with an overpowering serve and some excellent winners.
Overall, everyone in attendance was treated to some brilliant tennis on both sides of the net, as the duo had multiple, marathon rallies ended by acrobatic plays.
"Cristelle is one of the best players I've ever competed against," Cohen said. "But I don't think about who I'm playing when I'm out there. You just have to play the ball."
The Wildcats are next in action Nov. 4 at the ITA National Indoor Championship hosted by the University of Minnesota.