Irish netters go two for two in weekend dual meets, Dasso, Varnum sail to semis in Rolex National Intercollegiates
By STEVE KEPPEL
Sports Writer
The 13th-ranked Notre Dame women's tennis team held off Illinois State and Western Michigan in dual competition Sunday even without top players Michelle Dasso and Becky Varnum.
Dasso, a senior All-American, and Varnum, split off from the team to compete in the Rolex National Intercollegiate Championships, where they reached the semifinals in doubles, with Dasso also advancing to the semis in singles play.
The meet, held in Dallas, hosted some of the nation's best players in the third leg of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association grand slam.
The third-ranked and third-seeded Dasso advanced to the semifinals of the tournament by beating Stanford's 21st-ranked Keiko Tokuda, Arkansas' 30th-ranked Chin Bee Khoo and UCLA's Sara Walker (6-1, 2-6, 6-4).
Dasso surged all the way to the semifinals, where she was struck down by Stanford's top-seeded Laura Granville, who is currently on a 52-match win streak.
"I feel that I played really well," said Dasso. "I served very, very big in the first and second rounds, and overall, I was very happy with my play."
The eighth-ranked Irish duo of Dasso and Varnum had an impressive tournament in doubles competition as they advanced to the semifinals by beating Texas' seventh-ranked and fourth-seeded team of Vladka Ulhirova and Janet Walker 6-0, 6-4.
After two hard-fought victories, the Irish lost a tough match to Pepperdine's top-seeded and second-ranked Paola Palencia and Ipek Senoglu 6-3, 6-2.
"We were very happy with our play," said Dasso. "Becky and I played really well and that really helped our confidence.
"We were both really excited to be in the semifinals," Dasso continued, "and were looking for a little revenge against the team from Pepperdine, who we lost to last year in the NCAAs, but it didn't happen."
After the Rolex Intercollegiate Championship, Dasso returned to South Bend to take on Illinois State and Western Michigan in dual matches on Sunday. She sat out the first match and cheered on her teammates as they dismantled Illinois State 7-0 without losing one singles match.
The Illinois State match showcased some of the younger players' talents along with veterans like Kimberly Guy and Nina Vaughan, who played a higher seed with Dasso and Varnum missing from the lineup.
"Everyone played well today," said Dasso. "Kim Guy and Nina [Vaughan] had very tough matches where they both lost the first set but showed composure and came back to win."
The second dual match of the day against Western Michigan was much of the same for the Irish as they won 6-1 and improved their record to 2-1. The Irish lost a doubles point, but picked up the rest from the singles matches as Dasso returned to the lineup and led off the match by beating Larissa Chinwah 6-3, 6-4 in No. 1 singles.
"It was a little tiring and I wasn't sure if I was going to play," said Dasso when asked about her physical condition. "I felt good, but my arm was pretty sore from playing all weekend."
After watching Dasso's dedicated performance, the rest of the Irish picked up right where she left off and swept the singles matches.
Freshman Alicia Salas and Lindsay Green each won matches 6-0, 6-0, and Nina Vaughan beat Melanie Remynse 6-4, 6-2 at No. 2 singles to lift the Irish to a 3-1 advantage. Guy then sealed the deal for the Irish at No. 3 singles with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Frederika Girsang for a 4-1 lead.
Senior captain Dasso, who watched the first match from off the sidelines, is excited to be back playing in dual matches and was impressed with the play of her teammates.
"People on our team can really step it up and they really showed that today," said Dasso. "I was very happy with the way we played."
All Sports Stories for Monday, February 5, 2001
