Tulane University
Penn St
Women's Tennis Opens Spring with Victory
Feb 3, 2001 | Women's Tennis
Feb. 3, 2001
NEW ORLEANS, La. - Tulane University opened its spring season with an exciting 4-3 victory over Penn State University on Saturday morning at Goldring Tennis Complex.
Tulane (1-0) trailed 3-2 with the No. 1 and No. 4 singles flights in progress. Junior Anneli Axsater (Bjarred, Sweden) split her first two sets at No. 4 and held a 5-1 lead in the decisive set. However, Penn State's Kristen Nowicki battled back to even the set, but Axsater prevailed for a 7-5 win to knot the match at 3-3.
Meanwhile, at No. 1, Tulane senior Anna Monhartova (Plzen, Czech Republic) split her first two sets with Rebecca Ho of the Nittany Lions. The pair were tied at 4-4 in the third before Monhartova closed her match with consecutive games and earned the victory for the Green Wave.
"I felt confidant at that point [with the score tied at 4-4]," Tulane head coach David Schumacher said. "Even though Anna was not playing her best, I could tell that she was determined.
"That's what college tennis is all about," Schumacher concluded.
Also earning singles wins for the Wave were sophomore Julie Morris (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) and freshman Nancy Kockott (East London, South Africa). Kockott teamed with freshman Lucy Wood (Birmingham, England) for a victory at No. 2 doubles as well.
Tulane is back in action on Thursday, when it travels to Texas to play UT-Arlington.
Results: Tulane 4, Penn State 3
Singles:
No. 1: Anna Monhartova (TU) def. Rebecca Ho (PSU): 5-7, 6-1, 6-4
No. 2: Pilar Montgomery (PSU) def. Joyce Bergman (TU): 7-5, 6-3
No. 3: Julie Morris (TU) def. Judy Wang (PSU): 6-0, 6-2
No. 4: Anneli Axsater (TU) def. Kristen Nowicki (PSU): 2-6, 6-3, 7-5
No. 5: Janelle Perez (PSU) def. Maiko Cook (TU): 6-4, 6-2
No. 6: Nancy Kockott (TU) def. Leigh Ann Merryman (TU): 6-4, 6-3
Doubles:
No. 1: Ho/Montgomery (PSU) def. Bergman/Morris (TU): 8-4
No. 2: Kockott/Wood (TU) def. Wang/Perez (PSU): 8-6
No. 3: Teresa Whiteside/Merryman (PSU) def. Monhartova/Olga Mikhailova (TU): 8-6
Record: Tulane (1-0)
