April 22, 2005
SAN DIEGO, Calif. - For the second time in just over two weeks, a women's tennis match between Bay Area rivals Santa Clara and Saint Mary's came down to the No. 6 singles contest between the Broncos' Jessie Strunk and the Gaels' Stef Ordoveza. Ten deuces and eight match points later, Ordoveza prevailed to clinch a 4-3 victory for the fifth-seeded Gaels in the opening round of the West Coast Conference Championship, hosted by the University of San Diego at the West Tennis Courts.
Strunk, a junior, had bested Ordoveza 6-2, 6-7 (6), 6-4 when these two teams last met, in Moraga on April 6. That victory clinched a 4-3 win for the Broncos, who's record now stands at 14-7 overall after Ordoveza claimed today's rematch. The Gaels improve to 11-7.
Saint Mary's earned the first point of the afternoon by claiming two of three doubles matches. Santa Clara responded with wins by sophomores Kelly Leathers and Erika Barnes to put the Broncos ahead. The Gaels claimed singles wins on the first and third courts for a 3-2 lead when sophomore Kimberly Daniel tied the team score with her court five victory, and thus placing all eyes once again on court six.
The fourth-seeded Broncos remain in tournament action and will play eighth-seeded Gonzaga on Saturday at 9 a.m.
Doubles
1. Hoath/Lambert (SMC) Def. Kaloi/Leathers (SCU) 8-5
2. Cochrane/Barnes (SCU) def. Charlot/Schulman (SMC) 8-4
3. Kummer/Ordoveza (SMC) def. Daniel/J. Strunk (SCU) 8-3
Singles
1. Aude Lambert (SMC) def. Janalle Kaloi (SCU) 6-2, 7-5
2. Kelly Leathers (SCU) def. Kate Harden (SMC) 6-0, 6-0
3. Jessica Hoath (SMC) def. Catherine Cochrane (SCU) 6-3, 7-6 (5)
4. Erika Barnes (SCU) def. Kristin Kummer (SMC) 6-1, 7-5
5. Kimberly Daniel (SCU) def. Megan Schulman (SMC) 6-1, 6-0
6. Stef Ordoveza (SMC) def. Jessie Strunk (SCU) 7-5, 6-1
Order of Finish: 2, 4, 3, 1, 5, 6
