Cougars Claim Women's Championship

#2 College of Charleston 4, # 1 Furman 1

 

Photos

 

ELON, N.C. ? The College of Charleston the 2009 Southern Conference Women’s Tennis Tournament Championship Sunday with a 4-1 win over top-ranked Furman.  It is the second tournament title for the Cougars in the last seven years after CofC claimed the tourney crown in 2003. 

 

College of Charleston came away with the doubles point in a compelling matchup between the two squads.  Furman’s Laura Gioia and Monica Arguello cruised past Laura Borza and Ann Lee Evans, 8-1 at No. 1 doubles.  CofC responded with an 8-5 win at No. 3 doubles from Holly Dowse and Caroline Newman.

 

The doubles point came down to the second court where both teams took the lead at various points throughout the set.  With College of Charleston’s Kinsey Casey and Keely Mulligan ahead, 8-7, Furman’s Lauren Tomory and Jennifer Betts were able to tie the set and force a tiebreaker.  After both teams held the lead in the extra session, Casey and Mulligan claimed an 8-6 tiebraker to take the match, 9-8 and give the Cougars a 1-0 lead.

 

The Southern Conference 2009 Player of the Year, Gioia, recorded the Paladins’ only point of the match as she cruised to a 6-0, 6-1 win over CofC’s Borza at No. 1 singles.  College of Charleston would capture each of the next three singles matches to claim the win.

 

Casey topped Betts at No. 6 singles with a 7-5, 6-2 victory and Anna Lee Evans followed with a 6-1, 6-4 win at No. 4 singles.  Evans was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Performer as she did not lose a singles match during the entire tournament.

 

After dropping the first set to Arguello, 3-6, CofC’s Dowse claimed the second set, 6-3 before cruising to a 6-2 win in the third set to clinch the match for the Cougars.

 

Furman fell to 17-8 while College of Charleston improved to 24-4.  With the win, the Cougars will advance to the 2009 NCAA Women’s Tennis Championships.