April 27, 2008

Box Score

BALTIMORE, MD - Sophomore Amanda Schubert (Richmond, VA/Mills E. Godwin) won 6-4, 6-0 at fifth singles to clinch Johns Hopkins second straight Centennial Conference tennis title. Hopkins defeated Swarthmore 5-3 in a rematch of the 2007 championship match. The Blue Jays improve to 15-3 on the season while the Garnet fall to 12-6. Hopkins earns the Centennial's automatic qualifier to the NCAA Tournament with the win.

Hopkins took the first point in the match as sophomore Ellen Berlinghof (Dresher, PA/Upper Dublin) and freshman Yasmine Elamir (Saddle River, NJ/Heritage Academy (SC)) beat Jamie Midyette and Alexis Hickman 8-3 at third. Swarthmore then tied the match at 1-1 when Erica Kukoski and Luanna Cignavitch won 8-6 over sophomore Amanda Schubert (Richmond, VA/Mills E. Godwin) and freshman Abby Dwyer (Stuart, FL/Jensen Beach) at second. Sophomore Anita Bhamidipati (Egg Harbor Township, NJ/Egg Harbor Township) and junior Brittany Matava (Denver, CO/Littleton) pushed the Blue Jays back on top 2-1 with an 8-5 win at first over Rachel Wallwork and Jennie Park. The win for Matava was her 44th career doubles win, breaking the Hopkins record held by Tanya Gulnik.

Elamir gave Hopkins a 3-1 lead as she won her 17th straight match, beating Midyette 6-0, 6-1 at third. Park then beat Matava 7-5, 6-4 at second to make it a 3-2 match. Dwyer won 6-1, 6-4 at fourth to push the Blue Jays lead back to two. Wallwork then trimmed the lead back to one with a three-set win at first over Bhamidipati. Schubert then clinched the match with her win at fifth singles over Cignavitch.

Hopkins will be making its second consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament next weekend. Selections and pairings will be announced on Monday afternoon. Stay tuned to www.HopkinsSports.com for details