The University of Mississippi Athletics
Lady Rebel Netters Defeat Fresno State
6/21/1999 | Women's Tennis
May 20, 1999
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The fourth-seeded Ole Miss women's tennis team had an early call at the NCAA Championships Thursday and used it to their advantage to take out Fresno State 5-1 in the first round. They will meet fifth-seeded Duke in the second round Friday at 10:00 a.m.
With the win, the Lady Rebels have now won 11 in a row and improve to 24-4 overall, while 21st-ranked Fresno State finishes their season at 24-7. The Lady Rebels advance to the quarterfinals for the fourth time and the second year in a row. Duke defeated Iowa 5-0 in the other match at 8:00 a.m.
"I am really proud of the team," head coach Jerry Montgomery said. "They played hard and didn't let down. It's an adjustment when you play on the prestigious stadium courts at Florida. Fresno State is a much improved team and you have to give credit to their coaches and players for giving us a match."
The Lady Rebels got things going with straight set wins at the bottom two positions. Alesya Ignatieva needed barely an hour to defeat Ewa Grusiecka 6-0, 6-0 at No. 6 singles and then Mariana Eberle followed with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Kandiss Creighton at No. 5 singles. Eberle has won 10 of her last 11 matches.
Ivona Mihailova downed Shana Peete 6-2, 6-2 at No. 2 singles to give Ole Miss a 3-0 lead. Mihailova has now won 11 in a row. Courtenay Chapman struggled to hold serve most of the day, but she held off Liesl Fichtbauer 7-5 in the first set and then cruised in the second 6-2 to win her eighth in a row and make it 4-0.
That left court one and three to decide the match. In the marquee match, Senior Agnes Muzamel, ranked No. 4 in the nation, took control in her match against sixth-ranked Dora Djilianova 6-3, and had a break in the second set, before seeing the Bulldog come back to take the set 7-5. Djilianova took over in the third set winning 6-1 to give Fresno State its only point on the day.
Junior Celeste Frey won the first set (6-4) in her match to Kim Niggemeyer and then the second set was close going to a tiebreaker. The two battled back and forth until Frey, leading 7-6 in the tiebreaker, hit a winner down the middle to clinch the win for the Lady Rebels.
"Celeste did an excellent job of closing out the match at No. 3 singles," Montgomery said. "She handled the pressure well. That match was like a boxing match, with both players going back and forth and never giving up."
The Lady Rebels will meet Duke in the quarterfinals for the second straight year. Duke downed Ole Miss 5-0 last year in Notre Dame, Ind.
NCAA WOMEN'S TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS - Gainesville, Fla.OLE MISS 5Fresno State 1SINGLES
#1 Dora Djilianova (FSU) def. Agnes Muzamel (OM) 3-6, 7-5, 6-1
#2 Ivona Mihailova (OM) def. Shana Peete (FSU) 6-2, 6-2
#3 Celeste Frey (OM) def. Kim Niggemeyer (FSU) 6-4, 7-6(6)
#4 Courtenay Chapman (OM) def. Liesl Fichtbauer (FSU) 7-5, 6-2
#5 Mariana Eberle (OM) def. Kandiss Creighton (FSU) 6-2, 6-1
#6 Alesya Ignatieva (OM) def. Ewa Grusiecka (FSU) 6-0, 6-0
