March 9, 2008
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Top-ranked Northwestern (13-1, 3-0) won its seventh-consecutive dual match in a 6-1 victory over the Harvard Crimson (0-8, 0-0). The Wildcats improve to 13-1 this season and have a two-week hiatus before resuming play March 25.
Northwestern swept the doubles point with impressive performances by the 'Cats from all three courts. At No. 2, Samantha Murray (Altrincham, England/Altrincham Grammar) and Suzie Matzenauer (Tacoma, Wash./Bellarmine) rolled to an 8-0 victory.
In similar fashion, Alexis Conill (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Cardinal Gibbons) and Nazlie Ghazal (Temecula, Calif./Chaparral) dominated in an 8-1 effort at No. 3, securing the doubles point for the Wildcats. With the 1-0 lead for the day, a hard fought match on both ends at No.1 was decided in an 8-3 Northwestern victory by Georgia Rose (Mettawa, Ill./North Shore Country Day) and Lauren Lui (Houston, Texas/Kinkaid).
The Wildcats took a 2-0 match lead when Matzenauer secured her 21st-consecutive victory at No. 6. Her 6-0, 6-1 victory brings her to 14-0 in dual play this season. A short time later, Nazlie Ghazal put the 'Cats up 3-0 with her 6-1, 6-1 win at No. 5. She improves to 9-2 from that position in dual competition this year.
For the second consecutive dual, Samantha Murray clinched the match for Northwestern with a 6-1, 6-4 win at No. 3 to put the Wildcats up 4-0. Murray continues to play very well at the position, holding an 11-2 record in duals this season. Lauren Lui was impressive in her match at No. 4, beating Harvard's Catriona Stewart 6-1, 6-1 and giving the Wildcats a 5-0 lead. Lui remains undefeated at 10-0 from No. 4 this season.
The only blemish of the day came at No. 1, where sixth-ranked Georgia Rose fell 3-6, 3-6. Despite playing well, Rose was unable to gain control over Crimson's Beier Ko, who played exceptional throughout the match.
In a match filled with exciting rallies, Maria Mosolova (Moscow, Russia/No. 204) improved to 9-1 in duals this season when she picked up the 6-2, 7-6(1) victory at No. 2 and gave the 'Cats a 6-1 win for the day.
The Wildcats will enjoy a short, much-deserved break from dual competition for about two weeks. Northwestern returns to action when they travel to Austin, Texas to take on the 16th-ranked Texas Longhorns at 2 p.m. Tuesday, March 25.
Singles
1. Beier Ko (HARV) def. Georgia Rose (NU) 6-3, 6-3
2. Maria Mosolova (NU) def. Laura Peterzan (HARV) 6-2, 7-6 (7-1)
3. Samantha Murray (NU) def. Samantha Rosekrans (HARV) 6-1, 6-4
4. Lauren Lui (NU) def. Catriona Stewart (HARV) 6-1, 6-1
5. Nazlie Ghazal (NU) def. Vilsa Curto (HARV) 6-1, 6-1
6. Suzie Matzenauer (NU) def. Margarita Krivitski (HARV) 6-0, 6-1
Doubles
1. Georgia Rose/Lauren Lui (NU) def. Beier Ko/Samantha Rosekrans (HARV) 8-3
2. Samantha Murray/Suzie Matzenauer (NU) def. Laura Peterzan/Catriona Stewart (HARV) 8-0
3. Alexis Conill/Nazlie Ghazal (NU) def. Margarita Krivitski/Vilsa Curto (HARV) 8-1
Match Notes
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (6,5,3,4,1,2)