Wake Forest Women Sweep National Clay Court Championships
9/24/2000 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Sept. 24, 2000
PIKESVILLE, Md. - Wake Forest sophomore Bea Bielik (Valley Stream, N.Y.) became the first women's player to ever sweep the T. Rowe Price National Intercollegiate Clay Court Championships with wins in both the singles and doubles finals on Sunday. The Clay Court Championships, the opening leg of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Grand Slam, took place at the Suburban Club of Baltimore County.
Bielik, the nation's No. 14-ranked player and No. 3 seed, handled fifth-seeded and 18th-ranked Michelle Dasso of Notre Dame 6-1, 6-3 in Sunday's final to capture the singles crown. Bielik did not lose a set during her five-match title run this week. She beat the nation's No. 18, 26, 28, 36 and 43 players in the nation en route to the title. She is the first Wake Forest women's player to win an ITA Grand Slam event.
"I knew coming out that (Dasso) was going to run down a lot of balls so I was going to have to be patient," Bielik said. "Luckily I was able to win some key points when I needed to and I think that was the difference today."
"It's great to have a good couple matches under my belt and I haven't lost so my confidence is up there," Bielik said. "But I know I can still play a lot better than I have been playing the last two weeks."
Bielik and teammate Janet Bergman (Pinehurst, N.C.), a Wake Forest junior, upended the nation's top-ranked doubles team, Pepperdine's Paola Palencia and Ipek Senoglu, in the doubles championship match. Bergman and Bielik, ranked fifth nationally, dropped the first set 6-1, but rallied to win the next two sets, 7-5, 6-2 for the title.
"I told them at the beginning of the week that it was their doubles title to win or lose," Wake Forest coach Brian Fleishman said. "They went out there today and were able to turn it around and played well."
This is the second tournament championship in as many events for Bielik, who won the singles title at WFU's first tournament of the 2000-2001 season, the William & Mary Invitational, last weekend. Bielik, who was an ITA All-American last season, is now 9-0 in singles this season and has not lost a set. Bergman and Bielik, who brought home the doubles title from the W&M Invite, are also undefeated on the year with a 6-0 mark.
The Wake Forest women's tennis team returns to action next weekend, when they compete at the Gamecock Classic at the University of South Carolina, Sept. 29 - Oct. 1.