KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – After losing the doubles point for the first time this year, the 21st-ranked Vanderbilt women’s tennis team rallied to win four of the six singles matches to earn a hard-fought 4-3 win over No. 27 TCU in the first round of the ITA Kick-Off weekend. The Commodores (3-0) were tested for the first time this season and got two big singles wins from Hannah Blatt and Heather Steinbauer to hold off the Horned Frogs.
“It was a real nail-biter of a match, especially the last two singles,” head coach Geoff Macdonald said. “We were lucky to pull out the win against a tough TCU team. I thought the wins by the five and six positions were huge. Hannah Blatt’s win to tie the overall match and Heather Steinbauer’s comeback to take her individual contest and the team win are definitely the stories of the day.”
Vanderbilt found itself down 1-0 after the duo of Erica Robertson and Steinbauer fell for just the third time this year in doubles, losing 9-7 to TCU’s number one team. This came after Catherine Newman and Rachael Dillon were upended at the No. 3 spot.
With VU trailing 1-0 after doubles play, the Commodores wasted little time to tie things up as Newman posted a straight set (6-3, 6-1) win over TCU’s 67th-ranked Kayla Duncan at number two singles. Ranked 31st, Newman has now won 11 of her last 12 singles matches dating back to Oct. 23, 2009 and is a perfect 3-0 in duals this spring.
Vanderbilt took its first lead of the day when 29th-ranked sophomore sensation Jackie Wu cruised past TCU’s 2009 ITA All-American Nina Munch-Soegaard in straight sets (6-2, 6-3) at the top singles spot to remain undefeated in dual play. The Holmdel, N.J., native improves to 15-4 overall in singles, including winners of nine of her last 10.
With the Commodores holding a slight 2-1 lead in the match, the Horned Frogs registered wins at number four and three singles to retake the lead at 3-2.
TCU’s Idunn Hertzberg knocked off Keilly Ulery in three sets while Katariina Tuohimaa edged Preeg in three sets as well.
Trailing 3-2 in the overall match, VU once again tied things up at 3-3 when Blatt posted a consecutive set win at number six singles, dispatching Mastromarino, 6-2, 6-2 for her first win of the dual season. With the win, Blatt improves her singles record to 11-8.
With the match knotted at three, it came down to final singles match of the day, VU’s Steinbauer versus TCU’s Maria Babanova. Steinbauer gave the ‘Dores a little breathing room after she breezed through the opening set, taking it 6-1. However, things got interesting after TCU’s Babanova stormed back from a 4-2 deficit in the second to win it 6-4 and forcing a third and final set. In the third set, Steinbauer quickly got out to a 3-0 lead, but once again Babanova battled back and tied the match up at 4-4 in the final set before Steinbauer was able to pull away and win the final two game to preserve the three-set win and clinching the match for the ‘Dores.
The 21st-ranked Commodores will now wait and see who they will face in tomorrow’s ITA Kick-Off Weekend regional championship. VU will face the winner of top-seeded Tennessee and fourth-seeded Texas in tomorrow’s championship match at 1 p.m. CT on Saturday.
January 29, 2010
No. 21 Vanderbilt 4, No. 27 TCU 3
Doubles:
1. Duncan / Munch-Soegaard (TCU) def. No. 25 Steinbauer / Robertson (VU) 9-7
2. No. 40 Preeg / Wu (VU) vs. Babanova / Tuohimaa (TCU) tied 6-6, DNF
3. Hertzberg / Mastromarino (TCU) def. Dillon / Newman (VU) 8-4
Order of Finish: 3, 1
Singles:
1. No. 29 Jackie Wu (VU) def. Nina Munch-Soegaard (TCU) 6-2, 6-3
2. No. 31 Catherine Newman (VU) def. No. 67 Kayla Duncan (TCU) 6-3, 6-1
3. Katariina Tuohimaa (TCU) def. No. 32 Chelsea Preeg (VU) 6-2, 5-7, 6-0
4. Idunn Hertzberg (TCU) def. Keilly Ulery (VU) 3-6, 6-3, 6-3
5. Heather Steinbauer (VU) def. Maria Babanova (TCU) 6-1, 4-6, 6-4
6. Hannah Blatt (VU) def. Gaby Mastromarino (TCU) 6-2, 6-2
Order of Finish: 2, 1, 4, 3, 6, 5
