March 26, 2006

Chelsea Rauck

GENEVA, N.Y.--The William Smith College tennis team, ranked 25th in the region, gave No. 9 College of New Jersey all it could handle this afternoon. The Lions (9-0) esacped Bristol Field House with a narrow 5-4 victory.

The match was all square with just one match remaining, the fourth singles showdown between William Smith sophomore Corey Turner (Canterbury School/Ridgefield, Conn.) and TCNJ senior Jackie Gavornik. Gavornik grabbed the first set and led 5-4 in the second set, but Turner rallied to win 9-7 in a tie-breaker. Gavornik jumped out to a 4-1 lead, but Turner refused to go quitely. She fought back within a game at 5-4, but Gavornik eked out the win to secure the match.

It was the only the only three-set decision to go against the Herons (10-6). First-year Chelsea Rauck (Columbus School for Girls/Bexley, Ohio) won the marquee match up of the day at first singles. The Heron phenom is the sixth-ranked singles player in the region, but her opponent, sophomore Christina Contrafatto, was ranked just ahead of her at No. 5. In a rematch of the 2005 ITA Northeast Championship, Rauck avenged her first collegiate loss and extended her singles winning streak to 11 matches, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3.

At No. 5, sophomore Katie Campbell (Winchester/Winchester, Mass.) also won in three, 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 over Lindsay Katzel. First-year Katie Compton (Loomis Chaffee School/West Hartford, Conn.) earned William Smith's third singles win at No. 6, 6-1, 6-2 against first-year Erica Ollinick.

The Herons' fourth point came courtesy of junior Meghan Kelley (Norwell/Norwell, Mass.) and sophomore Erinn Cain (Pal-Mac/Palmyra, N.Y.) at third doubles.

William Smith is back in action on April 1, when the Herons host Brockport at 1 p.m.

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