Friday, April 1
Tampa, FL
Noon
Rice University
4
at
2
USF
Photo by: Maria Lysaker | Rice Athletics
Bowtell Blocks Bulls
4/1/2022 4:49:00 PM | Women's Tennis
Owls improve to 12-5
Tampa, FL Anna Bowtell shook off a tough tiebreaker loss with a pair of commanding sets to clinch a hard-fought 4-2 win for Rice over South Florida on Friday.
Doubles: The tone for the day was set in the opening point of the match. While Rice took the early advantage with a win by Federica Trevisan and Saara Orav at the third line, the matches at the first two positions came down to tiebreakers where neither side flinched. While the battle at the second line was tied 6-6 in a tiebreaker, Rice's 25th ranked duo of Maria Budin and Diae El Jardi snapped their own 6-6 tie in the deciding game to clinch the first point, 8-6.
Singles: In need of four points in singles, the Bulls immediately went to work by taking three first sets, including a 9-7 tiebreak win over Bowtell. Maria Budin increased the Rice lead to 2-0 with a win at the fifth line, but USF closed out matches at the top two positions to tie the match 2-2. While Saara Orav was finishing off a straight-set win at the sixth line, Bowtell rebounded from the tiebreak loss with a 6-2 win in the second to send her match to a third set. However, USF did the same at the third line, leaving the final points in question. While USF was moving to a win on three, Bowtell steadily moved through her third set to win 6-1 and clinch the match for Rice.
Of Note: Bowtell's win was the 90th of her career (90-31), becoming the 10th Owl to reach 90 singles wins. She moved to within two of matching Blair DiSesa (92-59) for ninth on the Owls' career wins list.
Elizabeth Schmidt: "Anna showed her experience today and answered the call when the team really needed her. She played at a very high level in the third set to clinch the match. USF made us earn every point and I was pleased how we met the challenge and stepped up."
Up Next: Rice and #42 FIU are scheduled to meet in Tampa on Saturday if weather permits. The match could be moved up to an 8 a.m. (central) start, but a final decision will not be made until tomorrow morning.
Doubles: The tone for the day was set in the opening point of the match. While Rice took the early advantage with a win by Federica Trevisan and Saara Orav at the third line, the matches at the first two positions came down to tiebreakers where neither side flinched. While the battle at the second line was tied 6-6 in a tiebreaker, Rice's 25th ranked duo of Maria Budin and Diae El Jardi snapped their own 6-6 tie in the deciding game to clinch the first point, 8-6.
Singles: In need of four points in singles, the Bulls immediately went to work by taking three first sets, including a 9-7 tiebreak win over Bowtell. Maria Budin increased the Rice lead to 2-0 with a win at the fifth line, but USF closed out matches at the top two positions to tie the match 2-2. While Saara Orav was finishing off a straight-set win at the sixth line, Bowtell rebounded from the tiebreak loss with a 6-2 win in the second to send her match to a third set. However, USF did the same at the third line, leaving the final points in question. While USF was moving to a win on three, Bowtell steadily moved through her third set to win 6-1 and clinch the match for Rice.
Of Note: Bowtell's win was the 90th of her career (90-31), becoming the 10th Owl to reach 90 singles wins. She moved to within two of matching Blair DiSesa (92-59) for ninth on the Owls' career wins list.
Elizabeth Schmidt: "Anna showed her experience today and answered the call when the team really needed her. She played at a very high level in the third set to clinch the match. USF made us earn every point and I was pleased how we met the challenge and stepped up."
Up Next: Rice and #42 FIU are scheduled to meet in Tampa on Saturday if weather permits. The match could be moved up to an 8 a.m. (central) start, but a final decision will not be made until tomorrow morning.
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
1,3
#1 Singles Match
12
15
Grace Schumacher / 0 [USF]
67
#2 Singles Match
12
44
Sierra Berry / 0 [USF]
66
#3 Singles Match
1234
7330
Laura Pellicer / 0 [USF]
565UF
#4 Singles Match
123
666
Margriet Timmermans / 0 [USF]
721
#5 Singles Match
12
66
Amelie Boy / 0 [USF]
33
#6 Singles Match
12
66
Kiana Mokhtari / 0 [USF]
32
Order of Finish:
5,2,1,6,4
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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