March 10, 2005

LAS VEGAS - The 22nd-ranked Notre Dame women's tennis team won the doubles point and then held on in singles play to down No. 30 UNLV 5-2 at the Fertitta Tennis Complex Thursday.

The Lady Rebels fell to 5-2 overall while the Fighting Irish improved to 6-5.

Notre Dame began the afternoon by winning two of three doubles matches for one team point. UNLV's lone victory came at No. 3 where Gyorgyi Zsiros and Claire Smith doubled up Sarah Jane Connelly and Kristina Stastny 8-4.

Moving to singles, where UNLV was without its No. 3 player Sharon Marin because of injury, the Irish took a 2-0 lead when Connelly cruised past Linda Tempelfelde at the sixth spot, 6-2, 6-1.

UNLV then got on the board when 29th-ranked freshman sensation Elena Gantcheva quickly upended No. 39 Catrina Thompson 7-6, 6-1 at the top spot. Thompson, along with twin sister, Christian, are sophomores hailing from Las Vegas' Bishop Gorman High School. With the victory, Gantcheva improved her overall record to 22-2, including 9-1 vs. ranked opponents.

All four of the remaining matches would go the distance. When the visitors took a 3-1 lead on 59th-ranked Brook Buck's defeat of Zsiros, 6-2, 6-7, 6-2, on court two, UNLV was faced with having to win all three remaining matches -- and nearly did.

Cindy Treber made the score 3-2 with a 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 win over Stastny on No. 4. However, Claire Smith could not close out Lauren Connelly at No. 5 and Notre Dame clinched the team win with the 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 final. Christian Thompson then finished off Anne Claire Ortiz-Luis at the third position, 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 to end things under the lights.

"Today was a hard-fought battle vs. a top 25 team," UNLV head coach Kevin Cory said. "For us to go toe-to-toe with a perennial power program like Notre Dame without our full lineup in action signals good things are on the way for this team this season."

UNLV continues its homestand on Friday vs. No. 57 Pennsylvania beginning at 1 p.m.

UNLV WOMEN'S TENNIS RESULTS#22 NOTRE DAME 5, #30 UNLV 2At Fertitta Tennis Complex, Las Vegas
DOUBLES: (ND EARNS ONE TEAM POINT)1. #2 Thompson/Thompson (ND) def. Gantcheva/Sharon Marin (UNLV) 8-22. Buck/Lauren Connelly (ND) def. Ortiz-Luis/Tempelfelde (UNLV) 8-23. Zsiros/Smith (UNLV) def. Sarah Jane Connelly/Stastny (ND) 8-4
SINGLES: (ND EARNS FOUR TEAM POINTS)1. #21 Elena Gantcheva (UNLV) def. #39 Catrina Thompson (ND) 7-6, 6-12. #59 Brook Buck (ND) def. Gyorgyi Zsiros (UNLV) 6-2, 6-7, 6-23. Christian Thompson (ND) def. Anne Claire Ortiz-Luis (UNLV) 6-2, 4-6, 6-44. Cindy Treber (UNLV) def. Kristina Stastny (ND) 6-3, 4-6, 6-45. Lauren Connelly (ND) def. Claire Smith (UNLV) 6-4, 4-6, 7-56. Sarah Jane Connelly (ND) def. Linda Tempelfelde (UNLV) 6-2, 6-1