Cardinal Girls’s Tennis advances in NCAA Match

No. 7 Stanford girls’s tennis (23-2, 10-0 Pac-12) superior to the third spherical of the NCAA Match with wins over Weber State (12-9, 6-2 Large Sky) and Oklahoma State (16-8, 7-2 Large 12) on Friday and Saturday at Taube Household Tennis Middle. The Cardinal improved its nation’s-best win streak to twenty and stays impregnable at house, the place they’ve gained 102 of their final 108 matches courting again to 2010.

On Friday, Stanford met little resistance from an overmatched Weber State crew showing in its first NCAA event since 2000. All through the afternoon, the Cardinal placed on a show of shot-making, energy, precision and doubles teamwork, showcasing what makes this group so formidable.

Stanford gained the doubles level shortly. On courtroom one, the No. 16-ranked crew of senior Angelica Blake and freshman Alexis Blokhina cruised to a 6-1 win, their sixteenth twin match victory of the season. Quickly thereafter, on courtroom two, sophomore Alexandra Yepifanova and freshman Emma Solar closed out their Wildcat opponents 6-1, securing the doubles level. On courtroom three, the sophomore tandem of Connie Ma and Valencia Xu had been on the cusp of a straight set victory as effectively when the doubles level was clinched.

The singles went equally. Graduate scholar Sara Choy completed first on courtroom six, dismantling her opponent 6-1, 6-1 and enhancing her document to 17-3 in twin matches this spring. Subsequent, No. 84 Blokhina dominated with a 6-0, 6-2 win on courtroom 4. No. 29 Yepifanova on courtroom one closed out the crew victory 6-2, 6-4, rallying from being down 0-4 within the second set. On courts two, three and 5, No. 18 Ma, No. 44 Blake and Xu additionally gave the impression to be headed to straight-set victories when the match ended. 

Saturday’s matches unfolded otherwise. No. 17 Oklahoma State gave Stanford a extra rigorous check, significantly within the singles, however in the end the Cardinal emerged victorious 4-1, a rating not indicative of the match’s closeness.

The Cardinal seized an early lead within the match by successful the doubles. Ma and Xu, their teamwork on full show, gained their match 6-1, their tenth straight on courtroom three. On courtroom two, Choy and Yepifanova broke serve to go forward 4-3 and by no means relinquished the lead, successful the set 6-4 and securing the doubles level. Over on courtroom one, Blake and Blokhina had been locked in a decent battle at 4-4 when the doubles concluded.

Singles play was carefully contested from the outset. Stanford and Oklahoma State every gained three first units. The Cowgirls evened the competition at 1-1 when, on courtroom one, highly effective OSU participant Kristina Novak defeated Yepifanova 6-4, 7-6, with the windy circumstances showing to adversely have an effect on Yepifanova’s serve. It was her first dropped singles match since February. 

A number of minutes later, Xu managed the baseline on courtroom 5 and gained her singles match 6-3, 6-4, regaining the Cardinal lead. The remaining matches all went to 3 units. Blokhina employed her energy recreation and charged again from a one-set deficit to win 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. With the Cardinal one level from victory, Ma, Blake and Choy had been all engaged in shut encounters. Blake, who had gained the primary set however dropped the second, relied on her shot selection and persistence to win 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, gaining the successful level.

Within the meantime, on courtroom two, Ma was staging her personal comeback. Having fallen behind 0-4 within the first set, she gained 5 of the following six video games to tie the set at 5-5 however fell quick, shedding it 7-5. Within the second set, she rallied to a 6-1 win and was forward 4-3 within the third earlier than the match was referred to as. Choy was battling on courtroom six, coming again to win the primary set in a tiebreaker, dropping the second set and forging a 3-2 lead within the third earlier than the match ended.

Afterwards, Blake and Xu spoke in regards to the keys to their matches. Blake famous her opponent’s consistency and quickness and the match’s lengthy rallies and mentioned her technique centered on “staying affected person, hanging in there and having to regulate and adapt..and to maintain preventing.” Xu mentioned her objective was to “play an aggressive model of tennis” and “to remain up on the baseline as a lot as I might.” 

Each commented on the significance of staying centered on their very own match and never getting distracted by watching the scoreboard. Blake additionally highlighted the crew’s depth and mentioned that “everybody’s a fantastic participant,” and that “all of us place confidence in one another and belief in one another, and that if somebody’s not having their greatest day, then a few of us have gotten it.” Xu famous the crew’s wonderful general document and mentioned that the crew felt snug on its house courtroom, with “family and friends within the stands and so much to play for.”

The Cardinal shall be again at Taube Household Tennis Middle for the NCAA Match’s tremendous regional spherical, internet hosting No. 10 Ohio State (22-7, 10-1 Large Ten) on Friday, Might 12 at 1 p.m.