100th win in a row for BYUH tennis women
By Michael Tsai
Advertiser Staff Writer
The Brigham Young-Hawai'i women made history, the Hawai'i Pacific men hosted a match at two venues that weren't theirs, and the HPU women ended their best match of the season with a loss yesterday during 10 rain-soaked hours of NCAA Division II West Regional play at BYUH's La'ie campus.
The top-ranked BYUH women (33-0) defeated the University of Hawai'i-Hilo, 5-0, to win their record-setting 100th consecutive dual match and advance to the NCAA II National Championship tournament in Pensacola, Fla. They join the No. 2 BYUH men, who clinched their spot in the tournament Friday with a 6-1 win over UC-San Diego.
The HPU men (14-2) beat UC-Davis, 5-0, in a match that started at BYUH and ended three hours later and seven miles away at the Turtle Bay Golf and Tennis Resort. The Sea Warriors, who do not have their own tennis facility, were the designated hosts of their men's and women's regional matches. The men's match was moved to the drier Turtle Bay courts after the third rain delay of the day.
The Lady Sea Warriors (13-7) were unable to complete the Hawai'i sweep, falling to UC-San Diego, 5-3, in a hard-fought match.
The day began on an emotional high with BYUH's historic No. 100. The Seasiders' streak, unprecedented at any level of NCAA tennis, started on the program's first day of NCAA Division II competition with a 4-0 win over Chaminade on November 9, 1988 and has spanned three national championships.
BYUH sports information director Scott Lowe, who did extensive research into the record, said the streak is more than twice as long as any previous mark.
"I suppose that 20 or 30 years from now it will probably be something that I'll remember and that we'll still be discussing, maybe more than the individual championships," said BYUH head coach Dave Porter.
Three Seasiders — Petra Gaspar, Tagifano So'onalole and Tomoko Sukegawa — have been with the program since the streak began.
"I never really thought about the streak until recently," said Gaspar, the No. 1 singles player in Division II. "I just came out to the court and tried to win every match. I'm very happy to be part of the team that did this, and I'm happy for our school."
After a one-hour rain delay, So'onalole sealed the victory with a forehand shot that streaked past the Vulcans' Lori Sakakihara.
"I don't know why, but I was pretty pumped today," said So'onalole, who showed no ill effects from a right rotator cuff injury.
The HPU men held a 3-0 advantage after doubles play but an extended rain shower sent the teams running for cover. After 40 minutes, officials decided to move the match to Turtle Bay. There, Jan Tribler beat Yaro Vinogradsky, 6-3, 6-4, and Wojtek Bratek beat Richard Galang, 6-0, 6-3, to end the match.
Bratek said the team has been focused all year on returning to the national championships, where they lost in the 2000 finals to eight-time champion Lander.
"All of us who were on the team last year know how close we came and we're focused on winning it all this time," Bratek said. "I'm a senior, so this is my last chance."
The Lady Sea Warriors, who lost in the first round of the nationals last year, won't be making a return trip. But, coach Henry Somerville said, they ended their season with a stirring show of heart.
They trailed 2-1 after doubles play, but drew to 3-3. To win the match, they needed to win two of the remaining three singles matches.
HPU's Fleurette Miranti lost her first set to Ashley O'Neil, 6-0, but battled back and appeared to be ready to take the second set when she suffered severe cramps in both thighs and her left calf. Miranti continued but lost the second set 7-6 (7-2).
Later, UCSD's Kristina Jansen clinched the victory with a 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 win over Bianca Barreto.
"I thought this was the most competitive match I've seen all season," Somerville said. "I'm disappointed that we didn't win and we're not going to the nationals, but I'm very proud of the way we played today."
