Clemson Falls To Miami, 5-2, In Sunday Women’s Tennis Action

March 8, 2009

CLEMSON, SC – The ninth-ranked Clemson women’s tennis team dropped a 5-2 decision to #6 Miami on a windy Sunday afternoon at the Hoke Sloan Tennis Center. The Tigers clinched the doubles point but the Hurricanes battled to claim five singles matches for the victory.

Clemson is now 8-5 on the year with a 1-1 record against conference foes while Miami moved to 12-3 overall and 2-1 in the ACC.

In doubles action, Estefania Balda and Alexandra Luc teamed up at the flight three position to win easily over Miami’s Gabriela Mejia and Claudia Wasilewski, 8-2, and post the first win for the Tigers. The Hurricane tandem of Julia Cohen and Bianca Eichkorn then secured an 8-4 victory over Clemson’s team of Ina Hadziselimovic at number two to even the score and force the flight one match into the decider.

Tigers Ani Mijacika and Keri Wong jumped out to an early 3-0 advantage and the Hurricane duo was never able to take a lead. Michaela Kissell and Laura Vallverdu rallied to tie the match and the teams were knotted three more times in the match, including at 7-7. Clemson held serve to go ahead and then broke Miami to claim the match, 9-7, and the 1-0 lead.

Vallverdu scored the Hurricanes’ first point with an upset at flight two over Josipa Bek (6-2, 6-2). Wong then posted the Tigers’ next point, which would end up being Clemson’s only win in singles play, with a straight set victory, 6-3, 6-4 over Mejia at the fifth position.

Mijacika, the nation’s #1-ranked singles player, fell to #13 Cohen at flight one in her first singles match since Feb. 15. The loss was just the second during the dual season for the Tiger junior. The matches on courts three and four ended within minutes of each other as Miami’s Kissell defeated Balda (6-3, 6-3) and Clemson’s Hadziselimovic fell to Eichkorn (7-5, 6-3), respectively.

The Hurricane’s Wasilewski won the second set over Laurianne Henry at flight six to force a super tie-break, which she then won, 10-2, to end the match.

The Tigers will be back in action next Sunday as they travel to Tallahassee, FL to take on the Florida State Seminoles. #6 Miami def. #9 Clemson, 5-2 Doubles 1. #10 Mijacika/Wong (CU) def. #30 Kissell/Vallverdu (UM) – 9-7 2. Cohen/Eichknorn (UM) def. #27 Bek/Hadziselimovic (CU) – 8-4 3. Balda/Luc (CU) def. Mejia/Wasilewski (UM) – 8-2 Order of Finish – 3, 2, 1 Singles 1. #13 Julia Cohen (UM) def. #1 Ani Mijacika (CU) – 6-4, 6-1 2. #39 Laura Vallverdu (UM) def. #4 Josipa Bek (CU) – 6-2, 6-2 3. #63 Michaela Kissell (UM) def. #76 Estefania Balda (CU) – 6-3, 6-3 4. #40 Bianca Eichkorn (UM) def. #117 Ina Hadziselimovic (CU) – 7-5, 6-3 5. #111 Keri Wong (CU) def. Gabriela Mejia (UM) – 6-3, 6-4 6. Claudia Wasilewski (UM) def. Laurianne Henry (CU) – 5-7, 7-3, 10-2 Order of Finish – 2, 5, 1, 4, 3, 6