SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - Salve Regina University women's tennis doubles tandem Shannon O'Brien (Gorham, Maine) and Erica Shay (Concord, Mass.) rallied from down 3-0 to take an 8-5 victory over Western New England, but the Bears prevailed in the overall match with a 7-2 victory in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action.
Seahawk sophomore Meg Olson (Colchester, Vt.) earned the other point for Salve Regina (2-4; 1-3 CCC) with a three-set triumph at fifth singles, improving to 2-0 in singles action on the season.
"Meg and Elizabeth (DiFilippo) played No. 1 doubles today and fought every game to deuce," said Seahawk head coach Ed Habershaw. "They complement each other well with their strengths and even ease the tension with each other when facing deuce after deuce after deuce."
O'Brien and Shay quickly found themselves in a 3-0 hole before winning six straight games at No. 2 doubles. The Golden Bear pair took the next two games while Salve Regina broke serve in the 12th game and O'Brien held serve in the next game for the match.
"In singles, our 4-5-6 players each lost a first set by a 6-4 score," said Habershaw. "Meg was able to fly through her second set (6-0) and play a full third set because all the singles matches were still out there. Kristen (Rose) won her second set and forced a third-set tiebreak. Both players split the first six points and then the next six points so it was 6-6 on the last changeover."
"Meg played so well in the final two sets, especially in the third after dropping the first game while getting caught in the middle on her approach shots. She kept pressuring by coming to the net behind approach shots and closed off points by closing the net. Leading 4-3 in the final set, she broke serve winning two quality points off a forehand down the line and a backhand cross court - she used her feet really well and hit with confidence."
Salve Regina hosts Wentworth Institute of Technology on Saturday at 1 p.m. during Fall Festival Weekend on the Newport campus.
Tennis Match Results
Salve Regina vs Western New Eng.
09/19/12 at Springfield, Mass.
(Volvo Tennis Courts)
Western New Eng. 7, Salve Regina 2
Singles competition
1. Linda Mustafa (WNE) def. Elizabeth DiFilippo (SRU) 6-2, 6-2
2. Valerie Conway (WNE) def. Shannon O'Brien (SRU) 6-3, 6-3
3. Alysha Lesieur (WNE) def. Erica Shay (SRU) 6-2, 6-1
4. Lindsey Brudvig (WNE) def. Kristen Rose (SRU) 6-3, 3-6, 1-0 (10-7)
5. Meg Olson (SRU) def. Michele Magliulo (WNE) 4-6, 6-0, 6-3
6. Gillian Adams (WNE) def. Anastasia Lara (SRU) 6-4, 6-2
Doubles competition
1. Valerie Conway/Linda Mustafa (WNE) def. Elizabeth DiFilippo/Meg Olson (SRU) 8-1
2. Shannon O'Brien/Erica Shay (SRU) def. Kelsey Grode/Alysha Lesieur (WNE) 8-5
3. Kelly Byrnes/Juliette Cormier (WNE) def. Alia Barefoot/Kristen Rose (SRU) 8-1
Match Notes:
Salve Regina 2-4; 1-3 CCC
Western New Eng. 2-4; 1-3 CCC
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (1,2,3,6,4,5)
Official: Vin Patruno T-3:11 A-38
