University of Houston Athletics
University of Houston
Cal State Bakersfield
Cougar Tennis Blanks Cal State-Bakersfield, 7-0
3/14/2010 12:00:00 AM | Tennis
March 14, 2010
BAKERFIELD, Calif. - In the first contest of a four-match swing in the state of California, the University of Houston tennis team whitewashed Cal State-Bakersfield 7-0 Sunday at Stockdale Country Club to improve to 6-3 on the season.
Houston earned the match's first point when the Cougars swept all three doubles matched, dropping only five combined games in the trio of victories.
"This was a good way to start such a long road trip," head coach John Severance said. "We have to come out tomorrow and keep the momentum going because we need to start piling up some wins. It was really nice to get the doubles point today; it's been hiding from us the last couple weeks. It's always nice to head into singles play with that first point in hand."
Freshman Bryony Hunter teamed up with junior Joanna Kacprzyk to earn an 8-2 win over CSUB's Veronica Dimas and Julian Mannix at the top doubles spot, while the UH tandem of Laura Ring and Maja Kazimieruk took an 8-3 decision in doubles match No. 2. The Roadrunners'' team of Sara Mijwel and Gabriela Horton was no match for the Cougars' pair of Elena Kazakova and Neila Starratt in the third and final doubles match as UH claimed the win 8-0.
In singles play, Hunter improved her singles record to 6-2 on the spring, as she wasted little time in disposing of Dimas with a 6-1, 6-1 win in the top singles pairing.
"Bryony really played well today and set the tone for the entire match," said Severance.
Joining Hunter with straight sets victories were Kazakova, who won 6-3, 6-1 at No. 3 over Ashlee Thorneycroft, and Starratt, who defeated Mijwel 6-1, 6-3 in the No 5 singles match.
Also claiming a straight set win for the Cougars in singles play was Kazimieruk, who defeated Mannix 6-3, 7-6 (7-2) during the No. 4 match.
Kacprzyk battled to claim the win in the No. 2 singles match, a 2-6, 7-6 (7-2), 10-8 victory over CSUB's Nefeli Diamanti. The Polish left-hander had to fight her way back in both the second set where she faced match point down 5-4 and in the third set where she trailed 7-5 before earning the win.
"Joanna really had to gut out her match today in a day when she really wasn't playing her best tennis," Severance added. "That was a testament to her perseverance as all the hard work she has put into her game showed."
In the final singles match, Pickerill earned a 6-0, 4-6, 7-5 win over Julie Hutton to complete the sweep for Houston.
The Cougars are back in action Monday when they face Concordia in a 3 p.m. (CST) match.
Players Mentioned
