BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. - No. 1 Charleston Southern took the first four points of the afternoon to defeat No. 5 Coastal Carolina on Thursday to advance to the 2014 Big South Conference Women's Tennis Championship Match presented by Musco Sports Lighting behind their 4-0 win over the Chanticleers at the Webb Tennis Complex.
The Buccaneers took two of the three doubles matches to record the opening point of the match and Marketa Placha, Alexandra Walters and Alia Nour all topped their opponents in singles play to advance to the championship match for the second season in a row. CSU will take on the winner between No. 2 Winthrop and No. 3 Liberty in the Big South championship final tomorrow afternoon at the Webb Tennis Complex with first serve in doubles action set for 2:30 p.m.
"Today was an awesome college tennis match," CSU head coach Mike Baker had to say following the contest. "The doubles was super close. My No. 1 team was six-all in the first set, but they came back and won 8-6. It was a great match and it carried us on and gave us momentum going into singles. We fought really hard. I have to commend Coastal too; they fought hard too. We faced them last week and it was a good match and an even better one today. We are looking forward to tomorrow."
Marketa Placha and Nicolin Luecke topped Coastal Carolina's Kourtney Kowal and Dominique De Wit on court no. 3 by a score of 8-3 for the first CSU win on the afternoon, but the Chanticleers matched the Bucs with an 8-4 win on court no. 2 as Amanda Malatek and Marie Babayan defeated Alia Nour and Mi'Kola Cooper.
The deciding third match for the doubles point came down to the wire as CSU's Yvonne Hubler and Alexandra Walters and Coastal Carolina's Libby Scott and Honami Yazawa were tied 6-6. However, the Buccaneers All-Conference duo picked up the final two games to take the 8-6 victory.
In singles play, Placha topped Libby Scott 6-1, 6-2 on court no. 1, while Walters defeated Romane Delay on court no. 3, 6-4, 6-1. Nour added to the CSU victory in completing the CSU sweep with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Babayan on court no. 6.
The matches on courts 2, 4 and 5, were all halted following the CSU clinching victory against the Chanticleers as the Buccaneers advanced to Friday's championship match.
Charleston Southern 4, Coastal Carolina 0
Apr 17, 2014 at Gardner-Webb (Webb Tennis Complex)
Singles competition
1. Marketa Placha (CSU) def. SCOTT, Libby (CCUW) 6-1, 6-2
2. Yvonne Hubler (CSU) vs. YAZAWA, Honami (CCUW) 5-7, 4-3, unfinished
3. Alexandra Walters (CSU) def. DELAY, Romane (CCUW) 6-4, 6-1
4. Nicolin Luecke (CSU) vs. KOWAL, Kourtney (CCUW) 6-3, 4-3, unfinished
5. Mi'Kola Cooper (CSU) vs. MALATEK, Amanda (CCUW) 7-5, 0-1, unfinished
6. Alia Nour (CSU) def. BABAYAN, Marie (CCUW) 6-1, 6-2
Doubles competition
1. Yvonne Hubler/Alexandra Walters (CSU) def. SCOTT, Libby/YAZAWA, Honami (CCUW) 8-6
2. MALATEK, Amanda/BABAYAN, Marie (CCUW) def. Alia Nour/Mi'Kola Cooper (CSU) 8-4
3. Marketa Placha/Nicolin Luecke (CSU) def. DE WIT, Dominique/KOWAL, Kourtney (CCUW) 8-3
Match Notes
Coastal Carolina 18-6, 5-4
Charleston Southern 16-3, 9-0
