April 21, 2011

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Championship Central

ORLANDO, Fla.-- Striking performances at the top three singles slots propelled Memphis past UTEP 4-0 in the first round of the 2011 Conference USA Women's Tennis Championships on Thursday at UCF's Lake Cane Tennis Center.

With the win, Memphis (16-9) advances in championship play for the second year in a row as the season comes to a halt for the Miners (6-14). Last season, top-seeded and 27th-ranked SMU ended the Lady Tigers' run in the tournament in a 4-0 decision in the second round.

Thursday's opening-round match-up showcased familiar foes, with UTEP and Memphis having met Bluff City less than two weeks ago, in a head-to-head dual where the U of M came out on top by a 5-2 decision.

This time around, the Blue and Gray jumped out to a 1-0 lead after clinching the doubles point with a commanding 8-0 win from Stefanie Mikesz and Andrea Arques-Garcia over Ximena Fuentes and Gabi Vazquez at the third tier before Mariya Slupska and Kathleen Hawkins knocked off Alexandra Glebova and Dariya Abdrakhmanova 8-3 at No. 2.

In singles action, sophomore Courtney Collins moved back to the top slot in the lineup for the Lady Tigers, where she improved her singles record to 18-6 with a 6-3, 6-2 routing of Trierweiler.

Slupska put together another strong individual outing at the No. 2 position, taking down Calvillo 6-1, 6-3 to improve to 19-6 overall as Mikesz knocked off Abdrakhmanova with the same exact score in straight sets at the third slot to clinch the decision for the Lady Tigers. The No. 4-6 positions went unfinished with Memphis leading in two matches.

The U of M will now face No. 3 seed Marshall, a squad coming off a first-round bye, at 10 a.m. ET on Friday, April 22. The Thundering Herd (17-5) is currently ranked 52nd in team ITA rankings and features one the country's top tandems in Michaela Kissell and Dominika Zaprazna, who are No.15 in the latest polls with a flawless 18-0 mark.

Memphis 4, UTEP 0

Singles competition
1. Courtney Collins (MEM) def. Martina Trierweiler (UTEP) 6-3, 6-2
2. Mariya Slupska (MEM) def. Rebeca Calvillo (UTEP) 6-1, 6-3
3. Stefanie Mikesz (MEM) def. Dariya Abdrakhmanova (UTEP) 6-1, 6-3
4. Kelly Gray (MEM) vs. Gabi Vazquez (UTEP) 4-6, 6-3, 4-1, unfinished
5. Kathleen Hawkins (MEM) vs. Alexandra Glebova (UTEP) 6-3, 1-6, 1-0, unfinished
6. Andrea Arques-Garcia (MEM) vs. Ximena Fuentes (UTEP) 4-6, 5-4, unfinished

Doubles competition
1. Martina Trierweiler/Rebeca Calvillo (UTEP) def. Courtney Collins/Kelly Gray (MEM) 8-1
2. Mariya Slupska/Kathleen Hawkins (MEM) def. Alexandra Glebova/Dariya Abdrakhmanova (UTEP) 8-3
3. Stefanie Mikesz/Andrea Arques-Garcia (MEM) def. Ximena Fuentes/Gabi Vazquez (UTEP) 8-0