Sixth-Seeded Pirates Set to Face #3 Xavier
4/25/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
April 25, 2014
Follow @SHU_TennisSOUTH ORANGE, N.J. - The Seton Hall tennis team kicks off its quest for a conference title later today as the sixth-seeded Pirates will face off with #3 Xavier in quarterfinal action at the 2014 BIG EAST Championship presented by NEW YORK LIFE from the U.S. National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows.
The Hall (11-9, 2-3) stumbled a bit in April, but heads into the championship riding the momentum of a commanding victory at Monmouth in which the team did not drop a single set and only yielded a total of 12 games in nine matches. Xavier (17-5, 3-1) has emerged as one of the most complete squads in the BIG EAST in its first year as a member of the league and will pose a formidable challenge after recording 17 wins in the regular season, including a four-match unbeaten streak to close the year.
In the championship format the spotlight shines even brighter on the all-important doubles point as it is vital to take advantage of an opportunity to carry an edge into singles competition.
At first doubles, Seton Hall's pair of Rocio Portela (Demetrio Vega Baja, Puerto Rico) and Chloe Sher (Tin Shui Wai, Hong Kong) is as capable as any in the conference and the two senior co-captains will carry a team-best 12-4 mark in dual match play into Friday's showdown. Ranked #9 in the Northeast region by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA), Portela and Sher triumphed in their final three appearances of the regular season and are 9-2 in their last 11 outings. Seton Hall's all-time winningest pair will likely face off with the Musketeers' Alex Brinker and Sydney Liggins; Xavier's primary #1 pair. Brinker and Liggins scored seven wins throughout the year including a 2-0 ledger against conference foes and will enter Friday in the midst of a three-match winning streak.
At #2, sophomore Julia Keenan (Greenland, N.H.) and junior Madison Shoemaker (Halfmoon Bay, British Columbia) have been a steadying presence for SHU since joining forces midway through the spring. Keenan and Shoemaker tallied five wins in nine matches as a team, including an 8-3 result in their BIG EAST debut against Villanova. The two will look to draw from the experience of playing together last season, an advantage which may pay dividends in a potential matchup with the prolific tandem of Cristina Di Lorenzo and Daniella Patton who have paced XU with a 16-3 mark at #2 thus far in 2014.
Xavier has been nearly as consistent in the third slot as Allyson Westling and Andrea Wolf have combined to post 15 wins in 19 completed matches. Seton Hall head coach Greg Wyzykowski figures to call upon the emergent duo of Alex Landert (Naples, Fla.) and Hannah Liljekvist (Djursholm, Sweden) to oppose them as Landert and Liljekvist have occupied #3 in each of the Pirates' last four matches. The two sophomores have collected three victories as a team and have lost only four games in their two most recent performances heading into the championship.
A doubles point victory could go a long way towards helping The Hall advance to Saturday's semifinal round as the Pirates entered singles play with a one-point lead in nine of their 11 team victories this spring.
In singles, SHU will be faced with an impressively balanced Musketeers lineup that features six players with at least 15 dual match victories. XU has been most successful at #3 where Di Lorenzo has fallen in just three of 22 outings and is 9-1 in the last 10 matches. The third position could prove to be a crucial point in the match as for The Hall; that spot has been proficiently occupied by the senior Portela who boasts career-best totals of 10 dual match wins and a 4-1 mark in BIG EAST play.
For their part, the Pirates have exhibited improved depth throughout the lineup as well as four players recorded at least 10 dual match wins while Liljekvist added nine in her first season in blue & white. As has been the case for the last four seasons, the two-time All-BIG EAST selection Sher led the way from the top position, logging 13 victories in 19 completed matches. As a team, Xavier posted a 15-7 mark at #1 this season with Brinker tallying eight wins and Liggins collecting seven of her own.
Brinker and Liggins also split time at the second position, amassing records of 7-2 and 10-3 respectively. For SHU, Liljekvist has been a welcome injection of proficiency as the primary #2 option, recording eight of the squad's 10 victories at the position; two of which came in conference play. There are not many holes in a Xavier lineup that completed the spring with a 100-32 singles record overall and in the back three positions, Patton, Wolf and Lizzie Oosterbaan have combined to record a 49-16 record that features wins in 26 of their 30 collective appearances in the team's last 10 matches.
This Pirates squad may have the tools to derail what has been an impressive run however as Keenan and Shoemaker have totaled 21 victories between the fourth and fifth positions while Landert strung together three commanding performances at #6 to close the year.
First serve between the Pirates and Musketeers is slated for 11 a.m. With a win, the Pirates will advance to play either second-seeded Marquette or #10 Butler in the semifinals. A loss would drop The Hall into the consolation bracket.
Check back on SHUPirates.com for a full recap of Friday's action.
