May 25, 2005
ATHENS, Ga. - There were a number of times Audra Cohen (Plantation, Fla./St. Thomas Aquinas) and Cristelle Grier (Epsom, England/Putney) could have thrown in the towel Wednesday in the duo's second-round match of the 2005 NCAA Doubles Championships against Michigan's Michelle DaCosta and Kara Delicata.
For starters, the tandem fell into a quick 4-0 hole in the first set, eventually dropping it 6-3. To make matters worse, Cohen's lower back began to seize up on her like a beaten down pick-up truck at the start of the second set. Throw in two nip-and-tuck tiebreaks, 90-degree heat, leg cramps and Delicata's nearly unstoppable service game -- a major factor in the Wolverine duo upsetting Cohen and Grier in the Big Ten Championship match May 1 -- and things did not look so good for the Wildcats.
Nevertheless, they emerged victorious from the three-hour saga, 3-6, 7-6 (7), 7-6 (5) -- the kind of gritty, never-quit win that is testament to owning the nation's No. 1 doubles ranking for much of the year.
Despite her ailing back, Cohen still managed to deliver huge, timely shots and Grier picked up any excess slack, as they willed themselves into the quarterfinals.
"We're proud of the way we played today," Cohen said. "Exhausted, but proud."
The `Cats got off to a slow start that has been the ugly signature of their last seven matches (in which they are 3-4). After DaCosta held serve to start the match, the Wolverines broke Grier to take a 2-0 lead. In the third game, Delicata unleashed her vicious serve by blazing three aces -- whiffing Grier once and Cohen twice.
"I looked at Audge after she whiffed on the first one, and we had a little chuckle," Grier said. "Then I did the same thing before Delicata got Cohen again on the next one. It was a tough thing to contend with all match, but we settled in after a while."
Michigan then broke Cohen in the next game, extending its lead to 4-0.
Grier finally stopped the bleeding by nailing a razor-sharp backhand lob to break DaCosta. Grier took the serve in the next game and closed the deficit to 4-2 by splitting the Wolverines with a cross-court forehand winner.
Delicata continued to be too much though. Her big serve moved the set to 5-2 in favor of Michigan. Then, even though Cohen held in the eighth game, DaCosta closed out the first set 6-3.
Grier put the `Cats ahead, 1-0, with her service game to start the second set, as the `Cats only allowed Michigan one point in the process. A great start partially canceled out when Cohen began to noticeably cringe from lower back spasms after each point.
In the third game, the two squads endured seven deuce points, before the Wolverines eventually broke Cohen, bringing the set to 2-1 in favor of the Wildcats. At the changeover, the pain had become almost too much for Cohen, who took a medical timeout to get worked on by the trainer.
"It's something that flares up every now and again," Cohen said. "You just have to push through it."
In the next nine games, everyone held serve, forcing the teams to a tiebreak at 6-6. There, the Wildcats took a crucial 3-0 lead by breaking each of Michigan's first three serves. But the Wolverines won three of the next four games to pull just within reach of NU at 4-3. The teams were then tied at 4-4, 5-5, 6-6, and 7-7 before the `Cats won two straight points to take the set 7-6 (7).
Neither team could force a break in the first six games of the third set, as the teams stayed deadlocked at 3-3. Then, Grier proved Delicata's serve was breakable by striking another cross-court forehand winner right between the Wolverines to give NU a 4-3 advantage.
In the eighth game, Grier extended their lead to 5-3 by landing a drop shot after she had charged the net to defend one of Cohen's forehands. But Michigan responded by winning the next three games to reclaim the lead 6-5.
As the 90-degree heat and length of the match forced fatigue to set in, Cohen (who had played a three-set singles match earlier in the day) began to hop around on one leg after each point from the back spasms. Still, she willed herself to hold serve in the 12th game, and the teams headed for yet another tiebreak.
There, the `Cats finally put the stamp on their 36th win of the year by winning 7-6 (5).
The duo will face Candice Fuchs and Megan Moulton-Levy of William & Mary next in the quarterfinals Thursday, May 26. Scheduling calls for that match to begin no earlier than 1:30 p.m. CT.
Live scoring and daily results are available at UGA's tournament website and the NCAA Division I Women's Tennis Championship page .
2005 NCAA Doubles Championships Second Round Results
#2 Audra Cohen/Cristelle Grier (NU) def. Michelle DaCosta/Kara Delicata (MICH), 3-6, 7-6 (7), 7-6 (5)
Cohen and Grier's Quarterfinal Match
vs. Candice Fuchs/Megan Moulton-Levy(W&M) @ not before 1:30 p.m. CT Thursday, May 26