October
12 , 2007
CEDAR
RAPIDS, IOWA . . . Defending Conference champion Coe
College assured itself of at least one individual champion by
advancing four players to the semifinals of Flight A singles
Friday at the 2007 Iowa Conference Women’s Tennis Championships
in Cedar Rapids.
Top-seed
and two-time defending Conference MVP Molly Fiala
of Coe posted wins over Luther College’s Brynne
Zinnecker (6-0, 6-1) and Coe’s Katie
Delagardelle (6-4, 6-1) to advance to the semifinals.
There she will face teammate and doubles partner Andrea
Schupbach, a No. 4 seed. Schupbach advanced to the
semifinals with straight-set wins over Central College’s
Katie Mokelstad (6-2, 6-4), Coe’s Susan
Gilmer (6-0, 6-1) and Luther’s Molly
Beyer (6-2, 6-1). In the other half of the A singles
bracket, No. 2 seed Hannah Jensen of Coe will
face teammate Hillary Allen, also a No. 4 seed.
Jensen posted a pair of straight-set wins following an opening-round
bye, while Allen advanced with three wins, including a 6-2,
6-0 win over No. 3 seed Molly Eslick of Wartburg
College in the quarterfinals. Delagardelle posted the tournament’s
early upset, bouncing No. 4 seed Pavla Brachova
6-4, 6-2 in the first round.
Fiala,
Delagardelle, Beyer, Schupbach, Allen, Eslick, Jensen, and Luther’s
Alana Humpal each attain All-Conference status
by reaching the quarterfinals in the A singles draw.
Luther
captured three of four berths in the B singles semifinals as
Justine Allen, Laura Williams, and Sara
Dale each picked up three straight-set wins. Central
captured the final semifinal spot in Flight B as Steph
Gibbons bettered Luther’s Michelle Finlon
6-7 (2), 6-2, 10-8 in a lengthy three-setter. Allen will face
Williams, while Dale will square off against Gibbons on Saturday
morning.
In
the Flight C singles draw, the University of Dubuque advanced
two players to the semifinals – Rachel Sarafin
and Andrea Gallo. Sarafin and Gallo are in
opposite sides of the draw with Sarafin facing Simpson’s
Jill Berner and Gallo meeting Buena Vista’s
Katie Anliker for spots in the final. Anliker
advanced to the semis with a 3-6, 6-0, 10-6 win over Luther’s
Abby Banken. Banken was involved in three straight
three-set singles matches, winning two before falling to Anliker.
Coe
also fared well in Flight A doubles, advancing two tandems to
the semifinals. The top-seeded Kohawk duo of Molly Fiala and
Andrea Schupbach posted wins over doubles entries from Central
(8-0) and Luther (8-4) and will meet the No. 3-seeded team of
Pavla Brachova and Caryl Abeyta of Cornell.
In the other half of the draw, neither seed held. Coe’s
Hannah Jensen and Hillary Allen defeated No. 4 seed Molly Eslick
and Emily Heying of Wartburg 8-3 in the quarterfinals,
while the Luther tandem of Kelsie Allen and
Amy Christensen topped teammates Molly Beyer
and Brynne Zinnecker, the draw’s No. 2 seed, by an 8-2
score. All four Flight A semifinal tandems receive All-Conference
status.
Dubuque,
Luther, Cornell, and Simpson each advanced a team to the Flight
B doubles semifinals. In one semifinal, Luther’s Justine
Allen and Fran Fairfield will face Cornell’s
Kristen Willard and Becky Birkhofer,
while the Dubuque tandem of Rachel Sarafin and Lindsay
Bonnell will face Jackie Suckow and
Alissa Nance of Simpson.
The
IIAC Individual Championship Tournament continues Saturday at
Clark Racquet Center on the campus of Coe College in Cedar Rapids.
Play begins at 9 a.m. with semifinal play in singles, followed
by championship and third-place finishes in all three flights.
Doubles play will follow immediately after with semifinal action.
Championship and third-place matches will be contested following
the conclusion of the semifinals.
The
IIAC Women’s Tennis Team Tournament will be contested
October 19-20 at the University of Iowa Tennis Courts. The six-team
tournament, which will be seeded by a vote of the coaches, will
crown the 2007 IIAC Women’s Tennis Champion.
Complete
results through Friday’s play are attached.
Complete
first day results are here.
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