April 21, 2007
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Sophomore Anna Dzeva enabled the 50th-ranked Purdue women's tennis team to beat No. 56 Minnesota 4-3 Saturday afternoon in the Twin Cities.
Dzeva won the deciding third set over Karina Chiarelli 6-3, after the two conference opponents split the first two sets. Dzeva won the first 6-4, but Chiarelli came back in the second to win 6-2.
Dzeva's win clinched the dual, but it was the play of top-line players Mallory Voelker, Brooke Beier and Neela Vaez that gave Purdue a 3-1 lead.
Vaez ignited the comeback with a convinving 6-3, 6-1 win over Ida Malmberg at No. 3, then Voelker buried Ashley Schellhas at No. 1 6-1, 6-3. Beier also won in straight sets at No. 2 over Tijana Koprivica, 6-0, 6-4.
Vaez and junior Cigdem Duru earned the lone doubles win, forcing Malmberg and Danielle Mousseau to retire as they trailed 5-4.
The Boilermakers quickly fell into a 2-0 hole after surrendering the doubles point and the match at No. 6 singles in straight sets.
Purdue completes its regular season Sunday with a dual at Iowa. The Boilermakers return to Minneapolis next Thursday for the start of the four-day Big Ten Conference Tournament.
No. 50 Purdue 4, No. 56 Minnesota 3
Singles
1. Mallory Voelker (Pur) def. Ashley Schellhas (MN), 6-1, 6-3
2. Brooke Beier (Pur) def. Tijana Koprivica (MN), 6-0, 6-4
3. Neela Vaez (Pur) def. Ida Malmberg (MN), 6-3, 6-1
4. Lindsay Risebrough (MN) def. Cigdem Duru (Pur), 7-5, 6-2
5. Anna Dzeva (Pur) def. Karina Chiarelli (MN), 6-4, 2-6, 6-3
6. Danielle Mousseau (MN) def. Alejandra Boeker (Pur), 6-0, 6-2
Order of finish: 6, 3, 1, 2, 4, 5
Doubles
1. Risebrough/Schellhas (MN) def. Beier/Voelker (Pur), 8-6
2. Vaez/Duru (Pur) def. Malmberg/Mousseau (MN), 5-4 (retired)
3. Chiarelli/Koprivica (MN) def. Dzeva/Boeker (Pur), 8-5
Order of finish: 3, 1, 2