Seton Hall University
Monmouth
Tennis Sweeps Monmouth to Close Spring
4/18/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
April 18, 2014
WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. - The Seton Hall tennis team snapped a four-match losing streak in resounding fashion on Friday, dropping a total of 12 games in nine matches en route to a 7-0 shutout victory at Monmouth.
With the win, the Pirates close the regular season with an 11-9 record that includes a 2-3 mark in BIG EAST play. The Hall now awaits the decision of the conference seeding committee which is due on Monday afternoon and will determine the matchups for next week's BIG EAST Championship.
Seton Hall swept all three doubles matches, taking a 1-0 lead into singles competition for the second-consecutive match.
For the second outing in a row, the sophomore tandem of Alex Landert (Naples, Fla.) and Hannah Liljekvist (Djursholm, Sweden) registered an 8-2 win, getting things started by downing Emily Ellis and Kendal Kauffman in third doubles. Landert and Liljekvist are now 3-1 as a team since debuting against Georgetown on April 4.
Seniors Rocio Portela (Demetrio Vega Baja, Puerto Rico) and Chloe Sher (Tin Shui Wai, Hong Kong) cemented the doubles point by sweeping Farrah Smoke and Brooke Verdiglione at #1 to close a stellar regular season. Ranked as the #9 pair in the Northeast by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) prior to the spring, Portela and Sher have affirmed their spot among the top teams in the region by posting a 12-4 record from the top spot and the two now own 20 victories for the 2013-14 season.
Sophomore Julia Keenan (Greenland, N.H.) and junior Madison Shoemaker (Halfmoon Bay, British Columbia) completed the sweep with an 8-2 win over Chioma Gabrid and Ashley Sandler, putting an end to their own three-match skid. Despite the recent slide, Keenan and Shoemaker have stabilized the #2 position for The Hall since reuniting mid-season; recording five of the team's nine wins in the second slot this spring.
Singles play featured six straight-set wins from The Hall, five of which saw Monmouth claim one game or less. Portela blanked Farrah Smoke at #3 and Landert did the same to Sarah Turner in sixth singles and the Pirates were off and running. Portela and Landert have each been in exceptional form of late as the senior is now 6-2 in her last eight appearances while Landert will carry a three-match unbeaten streak into the conference championship.
Keenan clinched the team victory by prevailing, 6-3, 6-2 against Kauffman in fourth singles. Tied for first on the team with 22 individual wins between fall and spring competitions, Keenan finishes the regular season with a .600 winning percentage in 20 dual matches.
At #5, Shoemaker also scored her 22nd total win of the year, halting a three-match personal slide with a commanding 6-0, 6-1 triumph over Gabrid. In her third season in blue & white, Shoemaker has recorded a career-high 11 dual match victories, nine of which have come in the fifth spot.
Sher and Liljekvist put the finishing touches on the shutout, each yielding just one game in wins at #1 and #2 respectively. Liljekvist improved to 4-2 in her last six outings by logging a 6-1, 6-0 win over Sandler that was her eighth in second singles in her first spring as a Pirate. Sher put an exclamation mark on a standout season campaign by cruising past Verdiglione, 6-0, 6-1, scoring her team-best 13th dual match win of the year.
The Hall will join the rest of the league in traveling to the US National Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y. next week where all 10 institutions will vie for a conference crown. Be sure to check SHUPirates.com on Monday for an update on the Pirates' first round opponent.
Seton Hall 7, Monmouth 0
Doubles
#1. Portela/Sher (Seton Hall) def. Smoke/Verdiglione (Monmouth), 8-0
#2. Keenan/Shoemaker (Seton Hall) def. Gabrid/Sandler (Monmouth), 8-2
#3. Landert/Liljekvist (Seton Hall) def. Ellis/Kauffman (Monmouth), 8-2
Order of Finish: 3, 1, 2
Singles
#1. Chloe Sher (Seton Hall) def. Brooke Verdiglione (Monmouth), 6-0, 6-1
#2. Hannah Liljekvist (Seton Hall) def. Ashley Sandler (Monmouth), 6-1, 6-0
#3. Rocio Portela (Seton Hall) def. Farrah Smoke (Monmouth), 6-0, 6-0
#4. Julia Keenan (Seton Hall) def. Kendal Kauffman (Monmouth), 6-3, 6-2
#5. Madison Shoemaker (Seton Hall) def. Chioma Gabrid (Monmouth), 6-0, 6-1
#6. Alex Landert (Seton Hall) def. Sarah Turner (Monmouth), 6-0, 6-0
Order of Finish: 3, 6, 4, 5, 1, 2
