Feb. 21, 2004

BLACKSBURG - The No. 33 ranked Virginia women's tennis team swept a pair of matches against intrastate foes on Saturday in Blacksburg. The Cavaliers (8-2) downed rival Virginia Tech, ranked No. 69, 4-3 in the morning before sweeping Radford 7-0 in the afternoon.

In the morning match against the Hokies, the Cavaliers defeated a ranked opponent for the third time this season. Virginia opened the match by taking two of the three doubles matches for a 1-0 lead. Kristen James (Clifton, Va.) and Shannon Stough (Hot Springs, Ark.) won at No. 2 while Caroline Hammond (Williamsburg, Va.) and Dora Bechliwanis (Etobicoke, Ont.) won at No. 3. In singles play, the Cavaliers won three matches to capture the dual match. Stough cruised to a straight set win at No. 6 over Carolina Rodriguez without dropping a game. Marta Bechliwanis (Etobicoke, Ont.) added a straight set win over Ashley James at No. 4 and James clinched the match with a three-set win over Ginger Lowdermilk at No. 2.

In the afternoon match against Radford, the Cavaliers cruised to the 7-0 win by only losing a total of five games. Marta Bechliwanis and Stough picked up their second singles wins of the day. Dora Bechliwanis (Etobicoke, Ont.), Lauren Bruch (Lake Forest, Ill.) and Caroline Hammond (Williamsburg, Va.) also picked up wins, as did Laura James (Clifton, Va.), who saw her first action of the season.

"Today was a great day for our team," said assistant coach Mait DuBois. "The win over Virginia Tech was a great win over an intense rival in a hostile atmosphere. We are proud of how we fought through the adversity to win. Then we played a solid match against Radford."

The Cavaliers return home on February 28 to host UNC-Greensboro. Time of the match is 2:30 p.m.

No. 33 Virginia 4, No. 69 Virginia Tech 3

Singles:
1. Anat Elazari (VT) def. No. 74 Mariko Fritz-Krockow (UVa) 6-7(4), 6-1, 7-6(2)
2. Kristen James (UVa) def. Ginger Lowdermilk (VT) 6-7(4), 7-6(3), 6-3
3. Felice Lam (VT) def. Lauren Bruch (UVa) 3-6, 6-3, 6-4
4. Marta Bechliwanis (UVa) def. Ashley James (VT) 7-6(7), 7-5
5. Elissa Kinard (VT) def. Dora Bechliwanis (UVa) 7-6 (9), 6-2
6. Shannon Stough (UVa) def. Carolina Rodriguez (VT) 6-0, 6-0

Doubles:
1. #37 Kinard/Lam (VT) def. #38 Fritz-Krockow/Bruch(UVa) 8-4
2. K. James/Stough (UVa) def. Elazari/Lowdermilk (VT) 8-3
3. Caroline Hammond/D. Bechliwanis (UVa) def. James/Rodriguez (VT) 8-5

No. 33 Virginia 7, Radford 0

Singles:
1. Marta Bechliwanis (UVa) def. Daniela Milano (RU) 6-0, 6-0
2. Lauren Bruch (UVa) def. Christina Glas (RU) 6-0, 6-0
3. Dora Bechliwanis (UVa) def. Caroline Downs (RU) 6-2, 6-2
4. Shannon Stough (UVa) def. Ashley Garrard (RU) 6-0, 6-0
5. Caroline Hammond (UVa) def. Jessica Nixon (RU) 6-0, 6-0
6. Laura James (UVa) def. Amy Costello (RU) 6-0, 6-0

Doubles:
1. No. 38 Fritz-Krockow/Bruch (UVa) def. Milano/Downs (RU) 8-1
2. Hammond/D. Bechliwanis (UVa) def. Glas/Garrard (RU) 8-0
3. Stough/M. Bechliwanis (UVa) def. Nixon/Costello (RU) 8-0