Saint Michael’s Tops Franklin Pierce, 8-0

RINDGE, N.H. (April 3, 2008) – Saint Michael’s College, ranked ninth in this week’s NCAA Div. II East Regional rankings, defeated Franklin Pierce University by a score of 8-0 in a Northeast-10 Conference women’s tennis match at the Grimshaw-Gudewicz Activity Center at Northfields on Thursday evening.

Five different Purple Knight players recorded two wins each on the afternoon, led by the first-doubles team of sophomore Lindsay Horne (Scituate, Mass./Scituate) and senior Michelle Wood (Chatham, N.Y./Chatham), who began the day with a 8-2 victory in doubles play. Horne also took a 6-1, 6-0 decision in first singles action, while Wood won by the same score at third singles.

The second doubles team of sophomore Catherine Dalton (Easton, Mass./Oliver Ames) and freshman Marybeth Ash (Westborough, Mass./Westborough) also earned two wins each, winning 8-0 in doubles action before earning wins at second singles (6-3, 6-0) and fifth singles (8-2), respectively.

Franklin Pierce (0-10, 0-7 NE-10) returns to the road tomorrow, as the Ravens travel to Hartford, Conn., for a match with Pace University beginning at 11 a.m. Saint Michael’s (8-4, 5-1 NE-10) continues conference play on Saturday at noon with a trip to Southern New Hampshire University. 

Saint Michael’s 8, Franklin Pierce 0

Doubles

1. Lindsay Horne/Michelle Wood (STM) def. Bianca LaPointe/Lauren Smilovich (FP), 8-2

2. Marybeth Ash/Catherine Dalton (STM) def. Erin Whyman/Mariana Zahora (FP), 8-0

3. Megan Conway/Marran Ranks (STM) def. Monica Lavertu/Francesca Santoro (FP), 8-3

Singles

1. Horne (STM) def. Smilovich (FP), 6-1, 6-0

2. Dalton (STM) def. Zahora (FP), 6-3, 6-0

3. Wood (STM) def. LaPointe (FP), 6-1, 6-0

4. Ranks (STM) def. Santoro (FP), 8-3

5. Ash (STM) def. Lavertu (FP), 8-2

6. Jackie Smullen (STM) vs. Kathleen Judge (FP) – DNP