NOTRE DAME, Ind.
-- Top-seeded Florida and third-seeded Duke advanced to the finals of the NCAA Division I Women's Tennis Championship with semifinal wins on Saturday. The Blue Devils opened the day with a 5-4 upset of second-seeded and defending champion Stanford, while the Gators beat Georgia 5-1 for the third time this season. The champion will be crowned on Sun., May 24, at 1:00 p.m. EST at the Courtney Tennis Center on the campus of host University of Notre Dame.
Duke won for the first time in seven meetings with Stanford, including a 5-2 loss to the Cardinal earlier in the season in the finals of the National Team Indoors. The Blue Devils won three of six singles matches and then won two of three doubles matches to advance to their first NCAA final after losing to Stanford in the semifinals in each of the last two years.
The Cardinal won 8-2 at No. 2 doubles for a 4-3 lead before Blue Devil freshman Kathy Sell and sophomore Brooke Siebel won 8-6 at No. 3 doubles to knot the match score at 4-4. Duke's second-ranked doubles team of juniors Karen Goldstein and Vanessa Webb rallied from a 6-4 deficit to win the final four games for a dramatic 8-6 win over Stanford's 14th-ranked sophomore team of Teryn Ashley and Anne Kremer for the deciding point.
Florida won five of six singles matches to advance to its fourth-straight final and seventh in school history, with two wins in the those finals earning the Gators the NCAA championship in 1992 and 1996. Junior Stephanie Nickitas and freshman Whitney Laiho won three-set matches to clinch the win. Senior Dawn Buth, freshman Stephanie Hazlett and sophomore Traci Green won in straight sets to put the Gators up 3-0.
Duke, with a record of 27-3, enters its first-ever appearance in the NCAA final with a 15-match winning streak dating back to a 5-1 loss to Florida on March 22. The Gators, at 26-0, are aiming for their third undefeated season in school history, after the 1992 and 1996 teams were perfect on their way to NCAA championship titles. Florida leads the all-time series with Duke 17-1 and has won the last five meetings.
NCAA DIVISION I WOMEN'S TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIP
Match Notes
Duke will be making its first-ever appearance in the national final tomorrow when the Blue Devils face top-seeded Florida. Florida leads the all-time series between the two school 17-1. The lone Duke victory came on April 2, 1994 when the Blue Devils captured a 5-3 victory in Durham. Since that win, the Blue Devils have lost five straight to the Gators, including a 5-1 setback this season on March 22 in Durham.
Florida will by vying for its third national title. The Gators won national crowns in 1992 and 1996. This is the fourth consecutive year that Florida has advanced to the final in the seventh time in the program's history. The Gators have posted a 2-4 mark in six national final appearances.
Duke is the first number three seed to advance to the national final since Stanford in 1994.
Heading into today's match with Stanford, Duke was winless (0-6) against the Cardinal and had faced Stanford the past two years in the semifinals, losing 5-1 a year ago and 5-2 in 1996. Overall, Duke is 1-3 against Stanford in NCAA tournament play. The first meeting between the two schools occurred at the '88 tournament with the Cardinal earning a 5-1 victory.
Duke has won just three national titles in school history (two in men's basketball and one in men's soccer). The women's tennis team is just the second women's team at Duke to advance to a national final (the other was the women's soccer team in 1993). Duke is the first Atlantic Coast Conference school to vie for the NCAA Division I women's national crown.
Before today's match with Stanford, Duke was 0-3 in its three NCAA semifinal appearances. In addition to its two losses to Stanford, the Blue Devils dropped a 5-1 decision to Florida in 1992.
Today's meeting with Stanford marked the second of the season between the two teams. On Feburary 22, the Cardinal handed the Blue Devils their first loss of the season (5-3) at the Rolex Team Indoors in the title match in Madison, Wisc.
Duke's overall record in in NCAAs stands at 14-9 and pushed the Blue Devils overall record to 27-3 (the most wins in school history). Duke heads into tomorrow's matchup riding a 15-match win streak.
Duke head coach Jamie Ashworth has compiled a 39-4 mark in his two seasons as the Blue Devils head coach.
Stanford is now 12-4 in semifinal appearances and had appeared in the NCAA finals each of the past two years, winning the '97 crown. The Cardinal last loss in the NCAA semifinals to eventual national champion Texas 5-1 in 1995.
Stanford's loss today snapped an eight-match win sreak for the Cardinal.
Today's matchup between Georgia and Florida marked the second time the two schools have faced each onther in the NCAA tournament. The only other previous meeting between the two schools occurred in the semifinals of the '95 tournament with the Gators earning a 5-0 decision.
Florida improved its record to 26-0 on the season with the win over Georgia. This year's squad could become the third to go undefeated if the Gators defeat Duke in tomorrow's final. Florida also had undefeated campaigns in 1991-92 (30-0) and 1995-96 (31-0).
Georgia's appearance in today's semifinal was the first for the Lady Bulldogs since 1995 when they dropped a 5-0 decision to Florida. Since 1987, Georgia has advanced to the semifinals six times.
