Seton Hall University
NJIT
Hall Downs NJIT for Second Consecutive Win
2/8/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
NEWARK, N.J. - A doubles sweep and victories from sophomore Luize Strike (Riga, Latvia) and Hannah Liljekvist (Djursholm, Sweden) in the top two singles positions highlighted the afternoon as the Seton Hall tennis team scored its second-straight win, topping NJIT, 5-2, on Friday.
The Hall is now 2-1 on the young season while Strike and Liljekvist are unbeaten in first and second singles respectively.
Sophomore Katie Kim (Honolulu, Hawaii) and senior Julia Keenan (Greenland, N.H.) also added individual wins as the Pirates took four of six singles points for the second consecutive outing. Through three matches, Keenan has also yet to sustain a setback while as a team; SHU has scored at least three singles points each time out.
In doubles play, Liljekvist teamed with Strike as part of the #1 pair for head coach Greg Wyzykowski and the two needed just two games over the minimum to get past Nathalie Habegger and Natalija Tasovac (6-2).
Keenan and Marisa Quevedo (Tyler, Texas) clinched the doubles point with a victory over Amanda Helminsky and Rafaella Sampaio by an identical score line - picking up their first win of the spring.
Kim and Thandy Kangwa (Fort Myers, Fla.) completed the sweep by outlasting Alba Rosas and Ines Vujkovac in a tiebreak, 7-6 (3).
All six singles matches were decided in straight sets as The Hall claimed the first three that reached a conclusion; putting the team result out of question.
Strike bested Habegger in their No. 1 singles matchup, posting a 6-2, 6-2 win. Through three appearances in the top spot the sophomore has only dropped a single set and has now won six sets in-a-row.
Liljekvist only lost a total of four games in a second singles showdown with Vujkovac, getting on the board with a 6-3, 6-1 triumph. An All-BIG EAST performer at #1 last season, Liljekvist has yet to drop a set this spring.
At No. 4, Kim recorded a 6-3, 7-5 win over Helminsky, earning her first singles victory of 2016.
Keenan closed the scoring for Seton Hall by notching a 7-5, 6-3 victory over Rosas - her third consecutive straight-set win.
The Pirates will look to continue their winning ways this afternoon against Fairfield in the second of two matches this weekend. Start-time is set for 3:00 p.m. in New Haven, Conn.
Seton Hall 5, NJIT 2
Doubles
#1. Liljekvist/Strike (SHU) def. Habegger/Tasovac (NJIT), 6-2
#2. Keenan/Quevedo (SHU) def. Helminsky/Sampaio (NJIT), 6-2
#3. Kim/Kangwa (SHU) def. Rosas/Vujkovac (NJIT), 7-6 (3)
Singles
#1. Luize Strike (SHU) def. Nathalie Habegger (NJIT), 6-2, 6-2
#2. Hannah Liljekvist (SHU) def. Ines Vujkovac (NJIT), 6-3, 6-1
#3. Rafaella Sampaio (NJIT) def. Isabell Klingert (SHU), 7-5, 6-3
#4. Katie Kim (SHU) def. Amanda Helminsky (NJIT), 6-3, 7-5
#5. Julia Keenan (SHU) def. Alba Rosas (NJIT), 7-5, 6-3
#6. Natalija Tasovac (NJIT) def. Marisa Quevedo (SHU), 6-3, 7-6 (4)
