Fourth-Ranked Argonauts Fall to Top-Ranked Seasiders in Finals :: West Florida falls short in first national championship match.

May 12, 2007

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. - Fourth-ranked West Florida's eight-match winning streak, and the Argonauts hopes for women's tennis first national championship came to an end on Saturday. Top-Ranked BYU-Hawaii (32-0) claimed their seventh national championship in the last nine seasons with a 5-0 win over West Florida (23-7) in the NCAA Division II Women's Tennis national championship match. West Florida was participating in their first national final.

"We played BYU-Hawaii a lot better today than earlier this season," said head coach Derrick Racine. Two of the three doubles matches were tight and the singles matches were very close."

After sweeping the doubles competition, BYU-Hawaii earned two singles triumphs to claim their second straight national title. Anne Claire Beard (Villevaude, France) claimed the Argonauts only set win in singles in the sixth position.

West Florida ended the season with 23 wins, the fifth consecutive season of at least 20 victories. The Argonauts also claimed their record ninth Gulf South Conference title and advanced to their first national final in school history.

"We had a lot of things not going for us earlier in the season," said Racine. "We were not playing as well as we should have been. But coming back to beat Valdosta State in the conference tournament and defeating Lynn in the national semifinals helped us. We just peaked at the right time."

RESULTS

#1 Singles: Yuliya Ustyuzhanina (BYUH) vs. Suzana Cavalcante (UWF), 6-2, 4-3, unfinished
#2 Singles: Jing Jing Liu (BYUH) vs. Tammy Kevey (UWF), 6-4, 4-0, unfinished
#3 Singles: Dori Magas (BYUH) def. Mandy Septoe (UWF), 7-5, 6-3
#4 Singles: Kun Deng (BYUH) vs. Renata Mattos (UWF), 6-2, 5-2, unfinished
#5 Singles: Anna Anikanova (BYUH) def. Paola Arevalo (UWF), 6-1, 6-4
#6 Singles: Shenley Searing (BYUH) vs. Anne Claire Beard (UWF), 4-6, 0-1, unfinished

#1 Doubles: J.J Liu/K. Deng (BYUH) def. M. Septoe/T. Kevey (UWF), 8-1
#2 Doubles: Y. Ustyuzhanina/D. Magas (BYUH) def. P. Arevalo/S. Cavalcante (UWF), 8-4
#3 Doubles: Ramona Husaru/A. Annikanova (BYUH) def. A.C. Beard/R. Mattos (UWF), 8-5

(By Gui Amaral Jasmin)