Clemson Edges Duke, 4-3, For ACC Championship Title

Sunday, April 20

Orlando, Fla.

11:00 a.m.

Duke University

Clemson (Finals)

Clemson Edges Duke, 4-3, For ACC Championship Title

4/20/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis

By: Duke Sports Information

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. - The Blue Devil women's tennis team fought to the end but came up just short of the 2008 ACC Women's Tennis Championship title on Sunday afternoon, as fourth-seeded Clemson defeated second-seeded Duke by a narrow 4-3 score at Sanlando Park in Altamonte Springs, Fla.

The Lady Tigers won the doubles point on the strength of two straight victories to head into singles competition with a 1-0 lead, as the Blue Devil freshman tandem of Ellah Nze and Reka Zsilinszka was knocked off by Ina Hadziselimovic and Alexandra Luc, 8-5, at No. 3 and the 10th-ranked Clemson tandem of Ani Mijacika and Carol Salge defeated the fourth-ranked Duke duo of junior Melissa Mang and sophomore Amanda Granson, 8-5, at the top position.

Singles play saw Duke tie the score at 1-1 on a 6-1, 6-4 win by 19th-ranked Nze at the No. 2 spot as she got past 108th-ranked Estefania Balda before Granson came away with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Federica van Adrichem at No. 5 to give the Blue Devils a 2-1 lead.

Mijacika, the No. 1-ranked singles player in the nation, then recorded a 6-1, 6-4 win over sophomore Tara Iyer at the top singles position to knot the score once more at 2-2 before Clemson took a 3-2 lead on Laurianne Henry's 6-2, 7-5 win over junior Jessi Robinson at No. 6.

The match was then tied for the third time in the contest as Mang recorded a three-set 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 triumph over Hadziselimovic at No. 4 to put the score at 3-3 with one singles match remaining.

The league title came down to another three-set battle, as 21st-ranked Zsilinszka squared off against 81st-ranked Salge on court three. Zsilinszka bounced back from a 6-1 loss in the first set to post a 6-3 win in the second set. The third set went into a tiebreaker with Salge clinching the match by a 7-6 (6) score in the final set, as Clemson (15-9) came away with a 4-3 victory for its eighth conference championship.

"I'm really proud of the effort we put in today, especially after dropping the doubles point," head coach Jamie Ashworth said. "We told them to leave everything they had on the court and they did. It's one of the most heart-breaking losses we've had since I've been at Duke. We fought hard and did everything we needed to do. Hopefully, we will learn from it."

Today's championship match will be available On-Demand by 9 p.m. on ACC Select (www.ACCSelect.com). Fans can also catch earlier coverage of the quarterfinals and semifinals on ACC Select. Complete results and information for this year's ACC Tennis Championships can be found on the league's official Web site at http://www.theacc.com/genrel/08-ten-championship.html.

Duke (18-4), ranked ninth in the nation, now awaits the 2008 NCAA Division I men's and women's tennis selection announcements, which will take place on Tuesday, April 29.

"[In the weeks to come] we have to work hard and figure out ways to practice under pressure," Ashworth said. "We have to put ourselves in pressure situations as much as we can and go from there."

Individual invitations for the 2008 NCAA Tournament are scheduled for Wednesday, April 30. All brackets will be posted at www.NCAA.com once released.

Complete Results - 2008 ACC Championships
Championship Finals, Sunday April 20, 2008
#4 Clemson 4, #2 Duke 3

Doubles
1. Mijacika/Salge (C) def. Mang/Granson (D) 8-5
2. Robinson/Tory Zawacki (D) vs. Van Adrichem/Balda (C) DNF
3. Hadziselimovic/Alexandra Luc (C) def. Nze/Zsilinszka (D) 8-5

Order of finish ? 3, 1*

Singles
1. Ani Mijacika (C) def. Tara Iyer (D) 6-1, 6-4
2. Ellah Nze (D) def. Estefania Balda (C) 6-1, 6-4
3. Carol Salge (C) def. Reka Zsilinszka (D) 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (6)
4. Melissa Mang (D) def. Ina Hadziselimovic (C) 6-2, 4-6, 6-4
5. Amanda Granson (D) def. Federica Van Adrichem (C) 6-2, 6-2
6. Laurianne Henry (C) def. Jessi Robinson (D) 6-2, 7-5