No. 30 Women's Tennis Rolls Green Wave, 6-0

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From SMUMustangs.com:

No. 30 Women's Tennis Rolls Green Wave, 6-0
Mustangs Improve To 8-1, Host Oklahoma State On Sunday

Feb. 13, 2010

DALLAS, Texas (SMU) - The No. 30 SMU women's tennis team rolled the Tulane Green Wave on Friday, 6-0, in a matchup of Conference USA foes that was moved indoors due to the Dallas area receiving more than 12 inches of snow the day before. The Mustangs improved to 8-1 with the victory and have now won 38 singles matches against just seven defeats this spring.

"I was really pleased with the way that we came ready to play in this conference match," said head coach Lauren Longbotham Meisner. "We set the tone early, unlike last week, and our energy was really high throughout the lineup."

The teams began play with singles matches and SMU won five of the six contests in straight sets. Once again freshman Shahzoda Hatamova was first to finish as she made quick work of Elizabeth Hamlin, 6-1, 6-2. Hatamova is now 8-0 in dual match play this season. Fellow rookie Edyta Cieplucha finished just moments later as she dispatched Lindsay Dvorak, 6-4, 6-3. Cieplucha is also undefeated this spring at 4-0.

Reigning C-USA Player of the Week Alexandra Malyarchikova brought the Mustangs closer to the victory with her easy 6-0, 6-2 win over Emma Levy. No. 47 Marta Lesniak had one of her toughest challenges of the young season against Mariam Kurdadze, a 2009 C-USA All-Freshman team member, as she needed a tiebreaker to claim the first set, 7-5. She regrouped in the second set and clinched the match for SMU with a 6-3 victory. The sophomores each improved to 7-0 in dual matches.

The senior duo of Pavi Francis and Sophie Quist claimed the Mustangs' final two points. Francis continued her strong play and cruised to a 6-1, 6-3 win over Emma Helisten, while Quist outlasted Hila Elster, 6-3, 3-6, 10-7.

"This was by far our best singles effort of the season," said Longbotham Meisner. "Tulane is a much improved team and we knew that we needed to come out with a lot of intensity and focus in order to get a win against them. We hope to take this same game plan against OSU tomorrow to finish off a good weekend."

The Mustangs return to the courts on Sunday when they host Oklahoma State at Noon CST. The match is still scheduled to be played at the Turpin Center, but the venue could change due to the inclement weather. Check http://www.smumustangs.com for updates on tomorrow's match.

#30 SMU 6, Tulane 0

SINGLES (Order of Finish: 2, 4, 3, 1, 5, 6)
1. #47 Marta Lesniak (SMU) def. Mariam Kurdadze (TLN), 7-6 (5), 6-3
2. Shahzoda Hatamova (SMU) def. Elizabeth Hamlin (TLN), 6-1, 6-2
3. Alexandra Malyarchikova (SMU) def. Emma Levy (TLN), 6-0, 6-2
4. Edyta Cieplucha (SMU) def. Lindsay Dvorak (TLN), 6-4, 6-3
5. Pavi Francis (SMU) def. Emma Helisten (TLN), 6-1, 6-3
6. Sophie Quist (SMU) def. Hila Elster (TLN), 6-3, 3-6, 10-7

DOUBLES
1. Kurdadze/Levy (TLN) def. Lesniak/Malyarchikova, 8-2
2. Francis/Hatamova (SMU) vs. Dvorak/Helisten (TLN) DNF
3. Cieplucha/Quist (SM) vs. Elster/Hamlin (TLN) DNF