Skyhawks rally to dominate singles play; freshman Martin delivers clinching win
Kaitlyn Martin made her first NCAA tournament match a memorable one as she captured the Skyhawks' decisive point. |
EASTON, Mass. (May 1, 2011) – Facing a 3-0 deficit after doubles, fourth-seeded Stonehill College roared back to win the top five singles matches and clinch a 5-3 victory over fifth-seeded Goldey-Beacom College in Sunday’s NCAA Division II East Regional opener at home.
Stonehill (19-3, 12-1 NE-10) advances to tomorrow’s final with top-seeded Queens (N.Y.) College (18-1, 6-0 ECC), who received a bye through the first round of the tournament.
Goldey-Beacom swept the doubles slate to put Stonehill in a 3-0 hole early. Sophomores Blanca Sancho (Zaragoza, Spain/I.E.S. Miguel Catalan) and Vanessa Leon (Caracas, Venezuela/S. Bolivar Y G. Garibaldi) earned the first point for the Lightning with an 8-4 defeat of junior Leah White (Walpole, Mass./Bishop Feehan) and freshman Kaitlyn Martin (Medway, Mass./Medway) at No. 2, and sophomore Anastasia Chibrikova (Moscow, Russia/Gymnasia No. 1519) and freshman Marie-Louise Klein (Espergaerde, Denmark/Tibberupskolen & Espergaerde Gymnasium) got past junior Amy Toegemann (Narragansett, R.I./The Lincoln School) and sophomore Chelsea Haedrich (Islip, N.Y./Islip) by an 8-6 margin at No. 3.
Paige Frost pulled Stonehill even with her win at fourth singles. |
Senior Lindsey Herchel (Hampden, Mass./Minnechaug Regional) and sophomore Paige Frost (Brigantine, N.J./Holy Spirit) battled to salvage a point for the Skyhawks at No. 1, but fell 8-6 to junior Marina Sales (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil/CAP/UFRJ) and freshman Gabriela Chaves (Joao Pessoa - PB, Brazil/Colegio Motiva).
White and Herchel began the task of bringing the Skyhawks back in singles play, wrapping up two quick victories as White took down Sales 6-4, 6-0 at No. 3 to pick up Stonehill’s first point and Herchel dispatched Sancho 6-1, 6-0 at No. 1. Frost got past sophomore Melanie Bonomo (Maracay, Venezuela/CEDI) in the fourth position to even the score at 3-3 overall. The Skyhawks took their first lead of the day when Toegemann wore down Klein 6-4, 6-3 at second singles to pull Stonehill within a point of advancing to Monday’s bracket final.
Martin delivered the decisive victory in her first NCAA tournament action with a three-set win at No. 5 singles. After Goldey-Beacom freshman Laura Cure Peters (Maracaibo, Venezuela/School Mater Salvatoris) took the first set 6-4, Martin recovered to sweep the second set 6-0, and sustained her momentum through the third set for a 6-2 triumph to cap the comeback.
Stonehill will host #1 Queens in the East Regional #1 final tomorrow at 11:00 a.m. at the Charles Watt Tennis Courts. The winner will advance to the Round of 16 in Altamonte Springs, Florida next week.
