13th-Ranked Lady Vols Pick Up 5-2 Road Win Over No. 25 Alabama University of Tennessee Athletics

13th-Ranked Lady Vols Pick Up 5-2 Road Win Over No. 25 Alabama

Rosalía Alda

April 3, 2009

Box Score

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Following one of its most impressive wins of the season, the 13th-ranked University of Tennessee women's tennis team (12-4, 5-2 Southeastern Conference) kept its momentum going, downing No. 25 Alabama (13-4, 3-4) on Friday afternoon by a score of 5-2 at the Alabama Tennis Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Sophomore Jennifer Meredith continued her hot streak as well, earning her 11th-straight singles victory and moving to 7-0 in conference play.

For the sixth time this season and second contest in a row, the Orange and White tallied a sweep of all three doubles contests to move out to a quick 1-0 advantage. The duo of junior Zsófia Zubor and sophomore Rosalía Alda started the match off on a high note for UT, as it blanked the Alabama team of Paulina Bigos and Taylor Lindsey, 8-0, at the second position in the lineup.

Nearly matching the shutout just moments later was the Lady Vol sophomore pairing of Maria Sorbello and Jennifer Meredith, which clinched the all-important doubles point for its squad with an 8-1 triumph over Meritt Emery and Shelley Godwin on court three. The Tennessee tandem of junior Caitlin Whoriskey and freshman Natalie Pluskota, ranked 39th in the nation, clawed back from a 4-7 deficit to finish off the sweep by taking out the No. 74-rated Crimson Tide combo of Tiffany Welcher and Courtney McLane in a tiebreaker, 8-7 (6).

It didn't take long for the Orange and White to increase its lead to 2-0 on the scoreboard, as Meredith defeated Emery in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4, on court four to run her singles winning streak to 11 matches, dating back to UT's victory over No. 44 Indiana on Feb. 20. The Marietta, Ga., native continues to lead the team with a 22-9 overall record, including a perfect 7-0 mark in SEC play.

Pluskota then became the third member of the UT roster to reach 20 singles wins on the season, downing McLane, 6-4, 7-5, at the No. 2 position, to improve to 20-12 this year and put the Big Orange within a single point of winning the match. All eyes then turned to court five where Alda was on the verge of victory over Godwin after winning the first set by a score of 7-5. Although she fell behind in the second frame, 3-4, the Round Rock, Texas, product rallied back to claim the next three games and win the set, 6-4, to clinch Tennessee's 12th team victory of the season.

Senior Samantha Orlin added a three-set, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, win over Bigos at the third slot to make it 5-0 in favor of the Orange and White before Alabama finally cracked the scoreboard with triumphs in third-set tiebreakers on the sixth and first courts. Lindsey scored the Tide's first point with a 4-6, 7-5, 1-0 (7), win over Zubor before the 105th-ranked Welcher took out No. 32 Whoriskey, 6-4, 6-7 (4), 1-0 (9). Despite the eventual loss, Whoriskey staged a huge comeback in the second frame just to get the match to a tiebreaker, storming back from a 5-0 deficit to take a 6-5 lead. After Welcher tied it back up at six-all, Whoriskey won the final point via a tiebreaker, by a 7-4 score.

The Big Orange will close out the road portion of its regular-season schedule this Sunday when it travels to Auburn, Ala., to take on the 29th-ranked Tigers. First serve is set for 2 p.m. ET at the Yarbrough Tennis Center. Live stats will be available at www.UTLadyVols.com.

SINGLES
1.	No. 105 Tiffany Welcher (ALA)	def.	No. 32 Caitlin Whoriskey (UT)	6-4, 6-7 (4), 1-0 (9)
2.	Natalie Pluskota (UT)	def.	Courtney McLane (ALA)	6-4, 7-5
3.	Samantha Orlin (UT)	def.	Paulina Bigos (ALA)	6-3, 3-6, 6-4
4.	Jennifer Meredith (UT)	def.	Meritt Emery (ALA)	6-2, 6-4
5.	Rosalía Alda (UT)	def.	Shelley Godwin (ALA)	7-5, 6-4
6.	Taylor Lindsey (ALA)	def.	Zsófia Zubor (UT)	4-6, 7-5, 1-0 (7)
DOUBLES
1.	No. 39 Caitlin Whoriskey/Natalie Pluskota (UT)	def.	No. 74 Tiffany Welcher/Courtney McLane (ALA)	8-7 (6)
2.	Rosalía Alda/Zsófia Zubor (UT)	def.	Paulina Bigos/Taylor Lindsey (ALA)	8-0
3.	Maria Sorbello/Jennifer Meredith (UT)	def.	Meritt Emery/Shelley Godwin (ALA)	8-1

Order of Finish: Doubles (2,3*,1); Singles (4,2,5*,3,6,1)

2011-12 Tennis Schedule
2011-12 Stats 2010-11 Stats
2012 Yearbook
2011 SEC Championship
News 2011-12 Roster Past Seasons
Tennis Tips from the Coaches Camp Flyer
Twitter