Jan. 29, 2005
ATLANTA – Dasha Potapova recorded a pair of wins against her former teammates and 18th-ranked Kristi Miller had wins at No. 1 singles and doubles as No. 34 Georgia Tech (2-0) defeated No. 41 Baylor (1-1), 5-2, Saturday afternoon at the Bill Moore Tennis Center.
Potapova and teammate Kacie Anson got the Yellow Jackets started with an 8-3 win over Iva Mihaylova and Caroline Korsawe at the No. 3 doubles slot, and Miller and partner Alison Silverio, ranked No. 16 according to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, clinched the doubles point with an 8-4 victory over ninth-ranked Zuzana Cerna and Daniela Covello at No. 1.
The Yellow Jackets then won at Nos. 1-3 singles to clinch the match from the Bears. No. 79 Kelly Anderson made quick work of Cerna at the No. 2 slot to win the first singles match, 6-4, 6-4, and Potapova made the match 3-0 in favor of Tech with a 6-3, 6-2 win over former teammate Klara Zrustova at the No. 3 position.
“I was proud of Dasha,” said Tech head coach Bryan Shelton. “She’s been looking forward to this match for a while. For her to come out today and be as strong as she was in doubles and then also play so solid in the singles was definitely a big confidence boost for her. It was a lift for the rest of the team as well, knowing that we have players that can step up at the top of the lineup and the bottom of the lineup gives us a feeling of what we can accomplish this season.”
After winning her first set 7-5, Miller cruised to a 5-2 lead in the second set at No. 1 singles before No. 92 Zuzana Zemenova tied the score at 5-5. Miller then won her service game to go up 6-5, but Zemenova responded by winning hers to set up a tiebreaker that Miller won, 8-6, to give the Yellow Jackets the match victory.
“I thought that Baylor was a really good team,” said Shelton. “Not only are they talented, but they really fought hard today. I thought that Kristi’s match at No. 1 was pretty indicative at how tough they were. Kristi played some great tennis and the girl just never went away, and I felt like their entire team just hung in there and played well. I knew that they were a talented team, but I didn’t know that they would fight as hard as they did, so I was very proud of our team for their effort. We really set the tone with the doubles point, which was huge.”
Baylor proceeded to win the next two singles matches as Zuzana Krchnakova downed Anson at the No. 5 position, 6-1, 6-2, and Mihaylova won a 10-8 super-tiebreaker third set to win 6-1, 4-6, 1-0 (8) over Alison Silverio in the No. 4 slot. Lyndsay Shosho then won in straight sets over Korsawe, 6-4, 7-6 (5) to record the fifth and final point for the Yellow Jackets.
Georgia Tech will return to action when it travels to Ohio State on Feb. 13th to face the Buckeyes at 12 p.m.
No. 34 Georgia Tech (2-0) 4, No. 41 Baylor (1-1)
DOUBLES
1. No. 16 Miller/Silverio (GT) def. No. 9 Cerna/Covello (BU), 8-4*
2. Zemenova/Zrustova (BU) def. Anderson/Shosho (GT), 8-6
3. Anson/Potapova (GT) def. Mihaylova/Korsawe (BU), 8-3
Order of Finish: 3, 1, 2
*Clinched doubles point
SINGLES
1. No. 18 Kristi Miller (GT) def. No. 92 Zuzana Zemenova (BU), 7-5, 7-6 (6)**
2. No. 79 Kelly Anderson (GT) def. Zuzana Cerna (BU), 6-4, 6-4
3. Dasha Potapova (GT) def. Klara Zrustova (BU), 6-3, 6-2
4. Iva Mihaylova (BU) def. Alison Silverio (GT), 6-1, 4-6, 1-0 (8)
5. Zuzana Krchnakova (BU) def. Kacie Anson (GT), 6-1, 6-2
6. Lyndsay Shosho (GT) def. Caroline Korsawe (BU), 6-4, 7-6 (5)
Order of Finish: 2, 3, 1, 5, 4, 6
**Clinched match point
