May 26, 2008
TULSA, Okla. -
Seventh-seeded Amanda McDowell of Georgia Tech defeated No. 25 Zuzana Zemenova in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3, in the championship match of the 2008 NCAA Women's Tennis Singles Championships at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center.
"You really have to give a lot of credit to McDowell," said head coach Joey Scrivano. "I've seen her play a lot of tennis over the past two years and she was playing her best tennis today."
Zemenova, the only athlete in Big 12 history to be named Player of the Year all four years, finishes her Baylor career with 123 career singles wins, the second-most in program history, with all of her matches coming at the No. 1 position. She also finishes her career with a 17-3 overall record in the NCAA singles tournament, winning the singles title in 2005, and with each of her three losses coming to the eventual national champion.
In 2005, Zemenova became the first unseeded player, and only the sixth freshman, to win the NCAA singles tournament. Her four ITA All-America honors is the most ever for a singles player in Big 12 history.
"It was a great run for ZZ this week," said Scrivano. "She beat a lot of great players the past two weeks (#3 Barte, #20 Babos, #4 Cossou, #5 Mosolova, #1 Miseviciute). But when you run into someone playing as well as Amanda, all of your little weaknesses will be exposed and then it's an uphill battle. A great player playing really well is a tough combination to deal with."
Zemenova broke McDowell's serve in the first game, but then McDowell ran off five straight games to take a 5-1 advantage. After Zemenova broke serve to move to 5-2, McDowell broke back to secure the first set.
The two battled through the second set, exchanging breaks through the first five games. A late break by McDowell put her up 5-2, and she held on for the 6-3 win in the second set.
"This has been an amazing four years," said Scrivano. "I feel like the most blessed coach in America to have a player and person like Zuzana Zemenova."
Zemenova has decided to turn professional and will begin her professional career in the upcoming weeks in Houston.
The championship match is scheduled to air on ESPNU next weekend, with air date and time to be announced sometime this week.
MONDAY RESULTS
#7 Amanda McDowell (GT) def. #25 Zuzana Zemenova (BU) - 6-2, 6-3
