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No. 6 Vanderbilt Women’s Tennis Opens SEC Play With 5-2 Win At No. 74 Arkansas 2/14/2004 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The sixth-ranked Vanderbilt women’s tennis team opened Southeastern Conference play with a 5-2 win over 74th-ranked Arkansas at the Dills Indoor Tennis Center Saturday. The Commodores opened the match with a 1-0 team lead after a dominant doubles performance. Vanderbilt’s three doubles teams sacrificed only two total games. No. 2 Schmandt/Tsoubanos earned an 8-1 win, No. 28 Falk/Menees posted an 8-0 shutout and Fish/Schellhas finished the sweep with another 8-1 victory. In singles play, freshman Amanda Fish took Vanderbilt’s next point without taking the court, as Arkansas’ Simona Arghire defaulted at third singles. Junior Audra Falk put on an impressive performance at first singles. She defeated UA’s Megan Ferreira, 6-1, 6-1. Senior Kelly Schmandt solidified the Commodore victory at second singles. Her straight-set 6-4, 6-3 victory gave Vanderbilt a 4-0 lead. The match already was decided as the final three courts finished. Sophomore Ashley Schellhas came back from losing her first set to take the second and finally defeat Arkansas’ Melissa Cornett in a super-tiebreaker. Junior Annie Menees and freshman Helene Stephens both dropped their matches in three grueling sets. Vanderbilt (7-1, 1-0 SEC) returns home next weekend to play host to Iowa and Clemson at the Brownlee O. Currey Jr. Tennis Center. The Commodores then will head to the Magnolia State to continue SEC play in the last weekend of February with matches against Ole Miss and Mississippi State. No. 6 Vanderbilt def. No. 74 Arkansas, 5-2 Doubles Singles |
