2008 Roster - By Name

L
T                                  PY
R Name                  Hgt   Cl   Ltr  Hometown (Prior School)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Bonny Davidson        5-4   Fr        Johannesburg, South Africa (Roedean School)
* Lauren Macfarlane     5-8   So   *    Ogden, Utah (Weber)
* Tapiwa Marobela       5-7   Sr   ***  Gaborone, Botswana (Clapham)
* Katie Rybakova        5-7   Fr        Coral Springs (Broward Virtual)
* Ania Rynarzewska      5-7   Jr   **   Inowroclaw, Poland (Warsaw School Complex)
* Federica Suess        5-8   Fr        Ludwigshafen, Germany (Kurpfalz Gymnasium)
* Carolin Walter        5-6   Sr-R **   Bingen, Germany (Hildegardis Gymnasium/Baylor)
* Jessica Wente         5-8   So   *    Whitehouse, Tex. (Whitehouse)

Freshman Katie Rybakova To Represent FSU at NCAA Singles Championships.

The Coral Springs, Fla.-native is only the seventh player in women's tennis history to be invited to the elite tournament.

May 1, 2008

TALLAHASSEE, FL - Freshman Katie Rybakova topped off a phenomenal freshman season with an at-large bid to the NCAA Singles Championships in Tulsa, Ok. May 22-27. The Coral Springs, Fla. native is only the seventh player in Florida State women's tennis history to earn the honor and the first since 2005.

"We are very proud and happy for Katie," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "It's a huge feat in her first year for her to come out and make that type of statement. We play in one of the best regions in the country and she's one of the best players in this region."

Up to this point in the post-season, Rybakova has posted an impressive 17-6 singles record in her first year as a Seminole and an overall mark of 27-10. She's 2-1 against top 15 opponents with a pair of huge regular season victories over Duke's #14 Ellah Nze and Georgia Tech's #4 Amanda McDowell from earlier in the season.

Rybakova was one of only two Seminoles to earn playing time in the number one spot where she earned seven victories in 12 outings. She also dominated play in the fall season as she went 10-2 with four victories over opponents who would go on to earn Top 30 rankings in the spring.

But before Rybakova can start taking down her competition at the NCAA Individual tournament, she'll have to face the teams headed to Tallahassee next weekend, May 9-11 for the NCAA Tennis Championships. No. 15 Florida State will kick off the tournament Friday May 9, against Ohio Valley Conference champions Samford at 11:00 a.m. No. 19 Texas and No. 43 USF will also compete to make it to the second round finals on Saturday at 4:00 p.m.

All Tallahassee tennis fans are encouraged to attend the Seminoles' first experience hosting the women's tennis national championships in program history at the Scott Speicher Tennis Center.

2008 Conference Awards

2008 Schedule and Results

Florida State Dominates Doubles In Day One.

Seminoles go 3-1 in doubles competition at Georgia Tech Invite.

Sept. 21, 2007

ATLANTA, GA - Florida State women's tennis wasted no time jumping into the fall season, defeating three of four doubles opponents in the first day flights of the Georgia Tech Invitational. The Seminoles conquered two of Georgia Tech's doubles teams, as well as a pairing from Harvard. Senior Carolin Walter and freshman Katie Rybakova also took victories in the singles competition later in the afternoon.

"It was a pretty good first day of fall competition for us," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "I was very pleased with how they showed up for doubles first thing this morning. They came out of the blocks on fire. They were very aggressive, they stuck with the fundamentals very well."

Sophomores Lauren Macfarlane (Ogden, Utah) and Jessica Wente (Whitehouse, Texas) started the day off for the Seminoles with an 8-2 victory over Georgia Tech's Whitney McCray and Noelle Hickey. Rybakova (Coral Springs, Florida) and junior Ania Rynarzewska (Inowroclaw, Poland) battled a close match with the Yellow Jackets' Kristi Miller (the No.3- match-up, freshman Federica Suess (Ludwigshafen, Germany) paired with Georgia's Adrienne Elsberry for a 8-2 victory over Harvard's Catriona Steward and Elizabeth Brook.

Walter and fellow senior Tapiwa Marobela (Gaborone, Botswana) nearly made it a doubles grand slam for the Seminoles, taking the Yellow Jackets' Christy Striplin and Amanda McDowell to a breaking point, falling just short of a win at 7-9.

In singles competition, Walter (Bingen, Germany) fought back from being down 5-2 in the third set, then rebounded from a 5-3 in the six-all tie-breaker against Georgia's No. 22-ranked Monika Dancevic 7-6, 4-6, 7-6. Newcomer Rybakova held her own in the Russian-native's first day of collegiate battle. In a dominant 7-5, 6-3 set, Rybakova defeated Georgia's Naoko Ueshima.

"Everyone played pretty well in singles," said Hyde. "Carolin had a very good match. It was an unbelievably high-quality tennis match on both sides. It's one of the best matches I've seen Carolin play since she's been at Florida State. She was just very professional in her approach. She was very patient, but aggressive when she needed to be. She really hung in there today and showed a lot of heart."

Competition continues tomorrow in all three flights for singles and doubles, starting at 10:00 am EST in Atlanta.

Freshman Katie Rybakova upsets No. 23 in singles at Georgia Tech Invite.

Sept. 22, 2007

ATLANTA, GA - For the second consecutive day, Florida State's women's tennis team overpowered its doubles competition at the Georgia Tech Invitational, winning two of three matches. Freshman Katie Rybakova remains unbeaten in both the doubles and singles flights, defeating Harvard in doubles this morning before notching a huge singles win over Georgia Tech's No.23-ranked Kirsten Flowers.

Rybakova (Coral Springs, Florida) and junior Ania Rynarzewska (Inowroclaw, Poland) put another mark in the victory column this morning as they defeated Agnes Sibilski and Catriona Stewart of Harvard 8-2. Senior Tapiwa Marobela (Gabaroone, Botswana) and freshman Federica Suess (Ludwigshafen, Germany) overpowered Eunice Lee and Elizabeth Brook in the Seminoles' second 8-2 doubles victory over Harvard.

In singles competition, the Seminoles struggled against the defending national champion Yellow Jackets, but the novice of the group, Rybakova, In a 6-4, 6-3 upset, Rybakova toppled Georgia Tech's second-highest ranked player, No. 23 Kirsten Flower in the first tournament of her collegiate career.

Tomorrow will conclude the third and final day of the competition in all three flights. Things get under way in Atlanta at 10:00 am.

Seminoles go 7-0 in singles, Rybakova stays undefeated in last day of Georgia Tech Invitational.

Sept. 23, 2007

ATLANTA, GA - Florida State wrapped up play at the Georgia Tech Invite on a high note as they swept all seven singles matches and defeated two of three doubles matches. The highlight of the tournament, however, was the debut of freshman Katie Rybakova, who finished the tournament unbeaten in singles and doubles.

"It was a very good start to our season. I'm pretty impressed," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "Obviously with Katie going 6-0 on the weekend it was great to see a freshman come in and step up. I think that tells you a lot what she's going to be able to bring to the table every time she steps on the court."

Rybakova (Coral Springs, Florida) swept the singles field, defeating all three opponents faced including Georgia Tech's No.23-ranked Kirsten Flowers. She also dominated the doubles competition with partner Ania Rynarzewska (Inowroclaw, Poland), taking down Georgia's Kelley Hyndman and Monika Dancevic.

Seniors Carolin Walter (Bingen, Germany) and Tapiwa Marobela (Gabaroone, Botswana) also notched a win in doubles play in the final round of tournament flights. In all, Florida State went 7-3 in doubles action for the weekend, showing prowess in the pairs competition.

"I was very pleased with how all the girls played," said Hyde. "I think we've identified the things we're going to work on to get better, but it was a great season start for us."

Next week the Seminoles will split up, with Walter, Rynarzewska and sophomore Lauren Macfarlane (Ogden, Utah) traveling to Malibu, Ca. for the Riviera/ITA All-American Championships starting Friday. Rybakova, Marobela, junior Jessica Wente (Whitehouse, Texas) and freshman Federica Suess will stay closer to home, competing in the Roberta Alison Invitational in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

09/21/2007
Doubles
Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Noelle Hickey/Whitney McCray (GT) 8-2
Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Sasha Krupina/Kristi Miller (GT) 9-8()
Amanda McDowell/Christy Striplin (GT) d. Tapiwa Marobela/Carolin Walter (FSU) 9-7
Opp/Federica Suess (FSU) d. Elizabeth Brook/Catriona Stewart (HU) 8-2
Singles
Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Monika Dancevic (UGa) 7-6(), 4-6, 7-6()
Adrienne Elsberry (UGa) d. Federica Suess (FSU) 6-0, 5-7, 6-2
Kelley Hyndman (UGa) d. Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) 6-4, 6-3
Cameron Ellis (UGa) d. Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 6-1, 5-7, 6-3
Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Naoko Ueshima (UGa) 7-5, 6-3
Christy Striplin (Duke) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-3, 6-0
Maya Johansson (GT) d. Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) 6-3, 5-6, 6-3

09/22/2007
Doubles
Samantha Rosekrans/Stephanie Schnitter (HU) d. Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) 8-3
Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Agnes Sibilski/Catriona Stewart (HU) 8-2
Tapiwa Marobela/Federica Suess (FSU) d. Elizabeth Brook/Eunice Lee (HU) 8-2
Singles
Amanda McDowell (GT) d. Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) 6-2, 3-6, 6-0
Whitney McCray (GT) d. Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 6-1, 6-3
Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. #23 Kirsten Flower (GT) 6-4, 6-3
Noelle Hickey (GT) d. Carolin Walter (FSU) 6-1, 6-1
Maya Johansson (GT) d. Federica Suess (FSU) 6-1, 6-3
Christy Striplin (GT) d. Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) 7-5, 6-4
Sasha Krupina (GT) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 7-6(), 6-3

09/23/2007
Doubles
Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Monika Dancevic/Kelley Hyndman (UGa) 8-6
Tapiwa Marobela/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Dariana Kozmina/Mateja Podgorsek (GSU) 8-5
Cameron Ellis/Naoko Ueshima (UGa) d. Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) 8-3
Singles
Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Stephanie Schnitter (HU) 6-1, 6-0
Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Agnes Sibilski (HU) 6-2, 6-4
Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Samantha Rosekrans (HU) 2-6, 6-0, 6-1
Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Elizabeth Brook (HU) 7-6(), 6-0
Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Catriona Stewart (HU) 6-0, 6-4
Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Vilsa Curto (HU) 6-0, 6-0
Federica Suess (FSU) d. Eunice Lee (HU) 6-1, 6-2

Seniors Win Doubles, Freshman Takes Singles at Bama Invite.

Seminoles succeed at Roberta Alison Invite, Macfarlane and Rybakova lose close fight in Malibu, Ca.

TUSCALOOSA, AL - Seniors Tapiwa Marobela and Carolin Walter turned their combined experience into a big win for Florida State this weekend as the women's tennis team finished strong at the annual Roberta Alison Invite in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Freshman Federica Suess also put forth a solid effort, winning her singles flight in today's final round of solo competition.

"All in all, I would say that it was a slightly above average weekend for the Seminoles as a team," said assistant coach Oliver Foreman. "However, there were certainly some good individual accomplishments. Carolin and Tapiwa won the doubles draw in the last match. They actually saved four match points in the finals to come back and win it. And in singles, Federica, our freshman, won her flight, so she's playing some good tennis at the moment."

Marobela (Gaborone, Botswana) and Walter (Bingen, Germany) played in the Crimson Doubles bracket, defeating three teams from three different schools in two days of play. Suess (Ludwigshafen, Germany) took down three singles opponents in three days, including the Crimson Tide's own Andrea Brenes. Out west, sophomore Lauren Macfarlane (Ogden, Utah) and freshman Katie Rybakova (Coral Springs, Florida) competed in the pre-qualifying round of the FILA/ITA Riviera All-American Tournament. As a doubles team, the two lost a tough match, finishing 8-6. In singles, Rybakova won her first set, but dropped the second two, coming up short in the end.

Macfarlane will compete in the singles qualifying round Tuesday, Oct. 2.

Following the conclusion of the Riviera tournament, Florida State will travel to Athens, Ga. for the ITA South Regionals hosted by the University of Georgia Oct. 20-23.

09/28/2007
Doubles
Tapiwa Marobela/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Veselinovic/Young (UIa) 8-1
Tapiwa Marobela/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Banikova/Ferancova (MsSt) 9-8()
Federica Suess/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Bares/Viera (Troy) 8-2
Pillay/Spivakovsky (UNCG) d. Federica Suess/Jessica Wente (FSU) 8-3
Singles
Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Merel Beelen (UIa) 6-4, 6-2
Federica Suess (FSU) d. Kelcie Klockenga (UIa) 6-1, 6-3
Tiffany Welcher (UAl) d. Carolin Walter (FSU) 6-2, 6-0
Alice Tunaru (UAl) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-4, 7-6()

09/29/2007
Doubles
Tapiwa Marobela/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Verekova/Zuzulova (AUM) 9-8()
Federica Suess/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Beelen/Poggensee-Wei (UIa) 8-5
Singles
Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Yudeshnee Pillay (UNCC) 7-5, 6-1
Federica Suess (FSU) d. Dominika Zuzulova (AUM) 6-0, 6-4
Whitney Chappelle (Aub) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-4, 6-4

09/30/2007
Singles
Kamila Dadakhodjaeva (AUM) d. Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) 6-2, 7-5
Federica Suess (FSU) d. Andrea Brenes (UAl) 7-5, 7-6(7)
Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Radka Ferancova (MsSt) 6-2, 6-2

Florida State Women's Tennis Wraps Up Successful ITA Southern Regional.

The Seminoles finished play in Athens, Ga. with a lot to be proud of.

ATHENS, GA - Florida State completed a string of stellar performances at the ITA Southern Regional today, leaving a mark on the second-biggest women's tennis event of the fall.

"Overall I think it was a very successful weekend," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "I don't think we're all playing our best tennis--which is to be expected at this point in the season--but we're definitely making tremendous improvements. It was really just exciting to see the team come together as this tournament progressed. That's another big piece of the puzzle that is going to help us get ready for the spring."

Freshman Katie Rybakova led the way in making history for the Seminoles, battling through the singles "A" draw bracket. The Coral Springs, Fla. native took down three seeded opponents including Miami's No. 4-seeded Laura Vallverdu and Georgia Tech's No. 8-seeded Whitney McCray to become the only unseeded player in the final eight. Rybakova nearly made took down a fourth ranked opponent as well, jumping up on Georgia Tech's No. 1-seeded Kristi Miller (ranked No. 5 in the country) 5-0 in the third set before falling 7-6 in the end.

Rybakova and sophomore Jessica Wente also made a strong run at the doubles "A" draw crown, falling short against the No. 1 seeded pairing in the quarterfinal match.

Fellow freshman Federica Suess toppled several opponents as the No. 1 seed in the "B" draw singles as well. Suess downed three in-state rivals from UCF and Stetson before topping the fifth-seeded Andrea Brenes of Alabama to advance to the final round of play.

Suess also had success in doubles play, pairing with junior Ania Rynarzewska for a 2-1 run into the semi-final match. Despite never having played together before, the pair of European natives backed up their third-place seed in the doubles "B" draw.

Senior Tapiwa Marobela had a big victory during the regional competition as well, overtaking Georgia's No. 22-ranked Monika Dancevic in the first round of the consolation draw.

Florida State will take a weekend off now before hosting the final tournament of the fall, the FSU Invititational in Tallahassee, Fla., Nov. 2-4 at the Scott Speicher Tennis Center.

10/20/2007
Singles
Bianca Eichkorn (UM) d. Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) 6-4, 6-3
Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. #8 Whitney McCray (GT) 7-5, 6-4
Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Lena Willi (JU) 6-2, 6-1
Maya Johansson (GT) d. Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 6-2, 6-3
Federica Suess (FSU) d. Anna Leonenko (Stet) 6-0, 6-4
Amanda McDowell (GT) d. Carolin Walter (FSU) 6-4, 6-2
Romy Farah (UM) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-1, 6-0

10/21/2007
Doubles
Tapiwa Marobela/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Dessbesell/Marami (JSU) 8-3
Alexander/Frangulyan (UF) d. Tapiwa Marobela/Carolin Walter (FSU) 8-5
Katie Rybakova/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Emery/Welcher (UAl) 8-6
Katie Rybakova/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Beelen/Chappell (Aub) 8-6
Ania Rynarzewska/Federica Suess (FSU) d. Carati/Frisell (UCF) 8-4
Singles
Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. #22 Monica Dancevic (UGa) 6-4, 3-6, 10-2
Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Whitney Benick (UF) 6-3, 6-1
Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. #4 Laura Vallverdu (UM) 6-3, 6-1
Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Whitney Chappell (Aub) 6-2, 6-4
Federica Suess (FSU) d. Jenny Frissell (UCF) 6-1, 6-4
Liz Cruz (USF) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-3, ret
Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Merritt Emery (UAl) 6-0, 6-2

10/22/2007
Doubles
McCray/Miller (GT) d. Katie Rybakova/Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-1 ret
Ania Rynarzewska/Federica Suess (FSU) d. Kirevea/van de Stroet (UMs) 8-3
Singles
#5 Kristi Miller (GT) d. Katie Rybakova (FSU) 5-7, 6-4, 7-6(5)
Federica Suess (FSU) d. Breanna Atkinson (Stet) 6-0, 6-1
Federica Suess (FSU) d. Andrea Brenes (UAl) 6-2, 6-3

10/23/2007
Doubles
Elsberry/Ueshima (UGa) d. Ania Rynarzewska/Federica Suess (FSU) 8-2
Singles
Claudia Wasilewski (UM) d. Federica Suess (FSU) 6-2, 6-0

Four Seminole Women Take Singles Titles in Final Day of Seminole Invitational.

Rybakova, Walter, Marobela and Macfarlane win championship matches as tournament concludes.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - Florida State's women's tennis squad gave the home crowd a climactic end to the three-day long Seminole Invitational as four players came away with championship titles in the tournament's six singles draws.

"It was a great finish to a very busy weekend," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "It's always good to have so much success, especially when you're competing in front of a home crowd. Our goals at the beginning of this tournament were to win every flight that we were entered in, and we didn't miss that goal by much."

Freshman Katie Rybakova closed out the fall season with an impressive 10-2 singles record as she took the garnet draw crown over Georgia Tech's Noelle Hickey in a 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 battle. Seniors Carolin Walter and Tapiwa Marobela won the gold and white draws respectively. Walter defeated FIU's Egle Petrauskaite 6-1, 5-7. 6-2 while Marobela defeated teammate Jessica Wente 6-3, 6-4. Sophomore Lauren Macfarlane rounded out the Seminoles' winning quartet, knocking out FIU's Priscilla Castillo in a dominant 6-1, 6-0 match.

"It was great to see progress from our two sophomores following their injuries," said Hyde. "Jessica came back three months after her injury and battled her way into the championships and Lauren came back from rolling her ankle a few weeks ago to win her bracket."

In finishing the Seminole Invite, Florida State wrapped the fall season on a high note with an 18-3 singles record for the tournament. Overall, the Seminoles had a successful autumn as they finished 46-29 in singles play. Freshmen Rybakova and Federica Suess both showed promise as they led the team in victories, notching 10 each.

"There was some top-notch competition this weekend. There were some players and teams that really pushed us and that's what we needed to get ready for the spring season ahead," said Hyde.

The Seminoles will return to action in January, participating in the Hawaii Invitational Jan. 15 - 21 before starting the home season Jan. 26 versus Jacksonville University.

11/02/2007
Doubles
Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. E. Adeeva/E. Horvath (KU) 8-3
Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. J. Bejikova/J. Zok (USF) 8-5
K. Dorn/Y. Svistun (KU) d. Tapiwa Marobela/Carolin Walter (FSU) 8-6
Tapiwa Marobela/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. I. Jarasova/T. Soldatova (JU) 8-2
Opp/Federica Suess (FSU) d. E. Hayman/M. Sotirchos (UNM) 8-4
Opp/Federica Suess (FSU) d. Castillo/Pazo (FIU) 8-4
Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. I. Blodniece/S. Torres (SCSU) 8-3
Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Ohlinger/Yakimchenkova (UCF) 8-1
Singles
Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Ola Abou-Zekry (UNM) 6-1, 6-1
Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Elvira Serrot (UCF) 6-1, 7-6(5)
Mirian Cruz (SCSU) d. Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 6-1, 6-4
Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Iva Jarasova (JU) 6-1, 6-0
Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Sarai Torres (SCSU) 6-3, 6-2
Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Alice Izinor (FAMU) 6-1, 6-1
Federica Suess (FSU) d. Kenza Belbacha (UCF) 6-3, ret

11/03/2007
Doubles
Brito/Petraskaite (FIU) d. Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 8-6
Tapiwa Marobela/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Hayman/Sotirchos (UNM) 8-3
Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Spencely/Vallasciani (FIU) 8-5
Opp/Federica Suess (FSU) d. Dorn/Svistun (KU) 9-8()
Singles
Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Janette Beijkova (USF) 6-0, 6-2
Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Sandra Zmak (UNM) 1-6, 7-5, 6-2
Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Lucy Scott (UNM) 6-3, 6-3
Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Marcela Rodenzo (SCSU) 6-1, 6-4
Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Emma Hayman (UNM) 6-4, 6-1
Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Maria Specnceley (FIU) 7-6(1), 6-1
Federica Suess (FSU) d. Victoria Tessmar (UNM) 6-3, 6-2

11/04/2007
Singles
Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Noelle Hickey (GT) 4-6, 6-4, 6-4
Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Egle Petrauskaite (FIU) 6-1, 5-7, 6-2
Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-3, 6-4
Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-3, 6-4
Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Priscilla Castillo (FIU) 6-1, 6-0
Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Tatiana Soldatova (JU) 6-2, 3-6, 10-4
Marijana Cutuk (FIU) d. Federica Suess (FSU) 7-5, 4-6, 6-2

FSU Women's Tennis Returns, Prepares To Take On JU Saturday.

The Seminoles hope to continue their Hawaiian success at home this weekend.

Honolulu, Hi - Florida State made its way back to Tallahassee yesterday after a successful showing at the 2008 Hawaii Spring Invitational in Honolulu. The No. 20-ranked Seminoles closed out the three-day tournament with a wildly successful 6-1 singles outing, finalizing their singles record for the tournament at 15-6.

Senior No. 60-ranked Carolin Walter and sophomore Jessica Wente both swept the singles courts, going 3-0 for the tournament. Walter posted her last win over Alica Tunaru of Alabama in a tough 6-7, 7-6, 6-1 match on Friday while Wente took her final win over Hawaii's own Natasha Zorec 6-4, 6-3.

Fellow sophomore Lauren Macfarlane defeated Sophie Kobuch of Hawaii 7-5, 6-0, leaving her with a 2-1 record at the tournament as her one loss came in an achingly close 7-6(3), 6-7(4), 6-2 battle against Sacramento State's No. 63-ranked Katrina Zheltova on the first day of the tournament.

Freshman Federica Suess also closed out the tournament undefeated, moving her singles record in just over a semester at Florida State to an impressive 13-4. The German-native defeated Edina Horvath of Kansas 6-4, 6-2 on the tournament's final day.

The Seminoles face a short week of practice before opening the home season at Scott Speicher Tennis Center this Saturday, Jan. 26, against Jacksonville University at 1:00 pm. Florida State's match-up with the Dolphins will mark the first of five consecutive home matches and a total of ten matches to be played in Tallahassee between now and March 9.

01/16/2008
Doubles
Bonny Davidson/Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. M. Martinez/Torarczyk (KU) 8-3
Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. J. Martinez/Valenzuela (SSU) 8-3
Katie Rybakova/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Bigos/Welcher (UAl) 8-6
Ania Rynarzewska/Federica Suess (FSU) d. Goff/Gorman (KU) 8-1
Singles
#63 Katrina Zheltova (SSU) d. Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) 7-6(2), 6-7(4), 6-2
Tiffany Welcher (UAl) d. #74 Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) 6-4, 6-4
Sophie Kobuch (UHi) d. #16 Katie Rybakova (FSU) 6-4, 0-6, 6-1
Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Edina Horvath (KU) 6-3, 6-0
Federica Suess (FSU) d. Aileen Tsan (SSU) 7-5, 6-1
#60 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Elizaveta Avdeeva (KU) 6-2, 6-3
Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Andrea Brenes (UAl) 6-2, 6-3

01/17/2008
Doubles
Bonny Davidson/Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Bigos/Brenes (UAl) 8-6
Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Avdeeva/Horvath (KU) 8-4
Bihag/Kobuch (UHi) d. Katie Rybakova/Carolin Walter (FSU) 9-7
Lyssenko/Tsan (SSU) d. Ania Rynarzewska/Federica Suess (FSU) 8-6
Singles
Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Kunigunda Dorn (KU) 6-1, 6-1
#74 Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Anastassia Lyssenko (SSU) 6-1, 6-1
Katrina Zheltova (SSU) d. #16 Katie Rybakova (FSU) 6-2, 7-6(6)
Magdalena Torarczyk (KU) d. Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 6-2, 7-5
Federica Suess (FSU) d. Natasha Zorec (UHi) 6-0, 6-2
#60 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Bianca Svensson (UAl) 6-1, 6-3
Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Merritt Emery (UAl) 6-4, 7-5

01/18/2008
Doubles
Emery/Tunaru (UAl) d. Bonny Davidson/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 8-2
Brenes/Svensson (UAl) d. Tapiwa Marobela/Jessica Wente (FSU) 8-6
Jarlkaganora/Zheltova (SSU) d. Lauren Macfarlane/Katie Rybakova (FSU) 9-7
Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Lyssenko/Tsan (SSU) 8-6
Singles
Tiffany Welcher (UAl) d. Bonny Davidson (FSU) 6-2, 6-3
Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Spohie Kobuch (UHi) 7-5, 6-0
#74 Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Elizareta Avdeeva (KU) 6-3, 7-5
Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Yulana Svistun (KU) 2-6, 6-4, 3-0 ret
Federica Suess (FSU) d. Edina Horrah (KU) 6-4, 6-2
#60 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Alice Tunaru (UAl) 6-7(), 7-6(), 6-1
Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Natasha Zorec (UHi) 6-4, 6-3

No. 21 FSU Women's Tennis Fries Rice 7-0 In Home Opener.

The Seminoles kicked the season off with a Friday night sweep.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - Six days after the season was scheduled to start, the Florida State women's tennis squad finally got things underway with a perfect 7-0 victory over Rice Friday night. The Seminoles swept the Owls in both doubles and singles in front of a home crowd at the Scott Speicher Tennis Center.

"It's good to have our first win under our belts after our first home match," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "The girls did what they needed to do, they were focused on the task at hand, but we definitely identified some things that we have to work on in the next couple weeks as we start getting into the meat of our schedule."

Florida State paired off by class in doubles, with the freshmen Katie Rybakova and Federica Suess notching the Seminoles' first victory in an 8-2 defeat of the Owls' Emily Braid and Varsha Shiva-Shankar 8-2. Sophomores Jessica Wente and Lauren Macfarlane secured the doubles point for the Seminoles with an 8-5 victory over Tiffany Lee and Rebecca Lin. In the final match, seniors Carolin Walter and Tapiwa Marobela held on for a close 8-7 finish over Rice's Julie Chao and Dominique Karas with a 7-5 tiebreaker.

In the singles competition, Macfarlane set to work and gave FSU its second point of the match with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Karas. Junior Ania Rynarzewska put FSU up 3-0 over the Owls as she defeated Braid 6-2, 6-3.

The match-clinching fourth point came in the toughest match of the night as Wente fought back from an 0-5 start in her first set against Christine Dao to force a tie-breaker. In an agonizing battle, Wente powered herself to an 11-9 victory in the breaking point to secure a 7-6 win in the first set. The match was so exhausting, Wente's opponent was forced to retire up 1-0 in the second set, allowing Wente to secure the Seminoles' first team victory of 2008.

"Jessica is nails when she plays from behind--she does not quit," said Hyde. "She just does a great job of competing. She competes so hard, she wants to win so bad."

Florida State finished out the singles competition with three more wins, allowing the Seminoles to get the season off to a perfect start. The team will try to keep its unbeaten streak alive Sunday when Illinois and Stetson come to Tallahassee for a double-header starting at 11:00 a.m. at the Scott Speicher Tennis Center.

Doubles
No. 1: Tapiwa Marobela/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Julie Chao/Dominique Karas (RU) 8-7
No. 2: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Tiffany Lee/Rebecca Lin (RU) 8-5
No. 3: Katie Rybakova/Federica Suess (FSU) d. Emily Braid/Shiva-Shankar (RU) 8-2
Singles
No. 1: #16 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. #98 Julie Chao (RU) 7-6(5), 6-3
No. 2: Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Dominique Karas (RU) 6-2, 6-2
No. 3: #60 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Tiffany Lee (RU) 6-3, 6-2
No. 4: #74 Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Rebecca Lin (RU) 6-3, 2-6, 6-2
No. 5: Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Christine Dao (RU) 7-6(9), 0-1 ret
No. 6: Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Emily Braid (RU) 6-2, 6-3

No. 21 FSU Women Sweep Courts, Finish Weekend Undefeated.

The Seminoles defeated Illinois and Stetson Sunday to close the weekend 27-0.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - Just as they powered past Rice on Friday, the No. 21-ranked Florida State women's tennis squad continued their dominant start to the spring season with a pair of 7-0 victories over Illinois and Stetson.

"It was a good weekend for the Seminoles," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "The girls did a great job taking care of business. It was a good couple of competitive matches for us. Right now we're just continuing to focus on getting better and working hard. We're not anywhere near where we're going to be or where we need to be."

Florida State powered through all three of its weekend matches without incurring a loss in singles or doubles, finishing with a perfect 27-0 record. In fact, the Seminoles lost just two sets through all three team matches.

In the morning match against Illinois, Florida State jumped ahead of the Fighting Illini picking up the doubles point on an 8-3 victory from senior Carolin Walter and freshman Federica Suess and an 8-4 victory from sophomores Lauren Macfarlane and Jessica Wente. Florida State's No. 34-ranked pairing of junior Ania Rynarzewska and freshman Katie Rybakova also pulled out a tough, 8-7(0) victory over Illinois.

The Seminoles continued to roll over the Illini in singles as No. 16 Rybakova picked up the first singles point in a 6-3, 6-1 defeat over Leigh Finnegan. No. 60 Walter powered past Marisa Lambropoulos 6-3, 6-2 for the Seminoles' third point. Newcomer Suess pushed her collegiate record to 14-4 as she scored the match-clinching mark for FSU with a win over Shivani Dave 6-2, 6-2.

Less than an hour after wrapping up with Illinois, the Seminoles were back on the court facing in-state rivals Stetson. A pair of 8-3 victories from two senior/freshman duos gave Florida State the doubles point as Tapiwa Marobela and Bonny Davidson made their first appearance of the day. The stellar sophomores Wente and Macfarlane picked up the third victory on a come-from-behind tie-breaker.

If the Seminoles were tired by the time they reached their final singles grouping of the day they didn't show it. All six competitors dominated their Hatter opponents in straight sets. Suess made quick work of Stetson's Catherine Canady 6-1, 6-0 for FSU's second point. Walter picked up the third point with a 6-1, 6-0 win over Unnah Purushotham. Rynarzewska clinched the Seminoles' third victory of the weekend in a 6-1, 6-1 defeat over the Hatters' Megan Jones.

Following a few days' rest, Florida State looks to continue its impressive undefeated streak next weekend at home versus UCF and FAMU on Saturday, Feb. 9 and Jacksonville on Sunday, Feb. 10.

Doubles
No. 1: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Finnegan/Fudge (Ill) 8-4
No. 2: #34 Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Dave/Lambropoulos (Ill) 8-7(0)
No. 3: Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. McCarthy/Qu (Ill) 8-0
Singles
No. 1: Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Megan Fudge (Ill) 4-6, 6-2, 11-9
No. 2: #16 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Leigh Finnegan (Ill) 6-3, 6-1
No. 3: #60 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Marisa Lambropoulos (Ill) 6-3, 6-2
No. 4: Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Momei Qu (Ill) 6-4, 6-1
No. 5: Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Kristina Minor (Ill) 6-2, 6-2
No. 6: Federica Suess (FSU) d. Shivani Dave (Ill) 6-2, 6-2

No. 22 FSU Moves To 5-0 With Wins Over UCF, FAMU.

The Seminoles look to extend their winning streak against Jacksonville on Sunday.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - In their second double-header in less than a week, No. 22-ranked Florida State women's tennis squad continued to roll over the competition with a 7-0 victory over Central Florida and a 6-0 victory over Florida A&M. The Seminoles will close out the weekend against Jacksonville tomorrow, Sunday Feb. 10 at 1:00 p.m.

In FSU's first match of the day against regional rivals UCF, the Seminoles jumped off to an early 1-0 lead with a doubles sweep. Senior Tapiwa Marobela and junior Ania Rynarzewska notched the Seminoles' first doubles victory with an 8-2 defeat of UCF's Jennifer Carati and Elvira Serrot. Sophomore duo Lauren Macfarlane and Jessica Wente continued their eight-match winning streak, defeating Jenny Frisell and Kyla McNicol 8-3.

The Seminoles continued to power past the Golden Knights in singles, as No. 16-ranked freshman Katie Rybakova trounced Frisell 6-2, 6-1 for FSU's second point. Macfarlane secured the third point with a dominant 6-0, 6-0 victory over Serrot. Walter won her 11th-straight match, defeating McNicol 6-1, 6-3 to give the Seminoles their fourth win of the season.

After a short break, Florida State returned to the courts for an abrupt singles face-off with cross-town rival Florida A&M. Freshman Bonny Davidson picked up her first collegiate singles victory with a 6-0, 6-1 win over the Rattlers' Lenice Boyd. FSU's second point came from Marobela's 6-0, 6-0 victory over Samaria Bailey. Walter picked up the Seminoles' third point with a 6-0, 6-1 defeat of the Rattlers' Alice Izomor. Wente clinched the FSU victory over Sarah Brinkley 6-0, 6-1.

The Seminoles will be back in action tomorrow at Scott Speicher Tennis Center looking to improve their spring record to 6-0 against Jacksonville. FSU was originally scheduled to compete against the Dolphins in the home opener Jan. 26 but were forced to re-schedule the match after a lengthy rain relay.

Doubles
No. 1: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Frisell/McNicol (UCF) 8-3
No. 2: Tapiwa Marobela/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Carati/Serrot (UCF) 8-2
No. 3: Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Belbacha/Yakimchenkova (UCF) 8-7(3)
Singles
No. 1: Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Elvira Serrot (UCF) 6-0, 6-0
No. 2: #16 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Jenny Frisell (UCF) 6-2, 6-1
No. 3: #60 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Kyle McNicol (UCF) 6-1, 6-3
No. 4: Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Kenza Balbacha (UCF) 6-1, 6-4
No. 5: Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Anna Yakimchenkova (UCF) 6-2, 1-6, 10-4
No. 6: Federica Suess (FSU) d. Jennifer Carati (UCF) 6-3, 6-0

Singles
No. 1: Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) vs. Rachel Pye (FAMU) 7-5, dnf
No. 2: #60 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Alice Izomor (FAMU) 6-0, 6-1
No. 3: Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Sarah Brinkley (FAMU) 6-0, 6-1
No. 4: #74 Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Samaria Bailey (FAMU) 6-0, 6-0
No. 5: Bonny Davidson (FSU) d. Lenice Boyd (FAMU) 6-0, 6-1

No. 22 FSU Women's Tennis Pushes Unbeaten Streak to 50 With JU Win.

The Seminoles defeated the Dolphins 7-0, giving them 6 team wins and 50 match wins this season.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - If a 6-0 team record doesn't say enough about the power of FSU's No. 22-ranked women's tennis squad, winning 50 matches in a row to start the season certainly does. With nine more victories in singles and doubles against Jacksonville University today, Feb. 10, the Seminoles pro-longed their record of perfection, which stands as the best spring season start in program history.

"Going 50-0 in the first six dual matches is a pretty incredible feat," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "We haven't had anyone even slip up and miss a point, which is very impressive. The team has some very specific things they want to accomplish this season and their resolve to do that is impressive. I think it shows in how they've performed in the last 50 matches."

In the 27-year history of FSU women's tennis, no team has ever had such a powerful start to the season. The 2003 and 2004 squads both started with three 7-0 victories, but they pale in comparison to the five dominant 7-0 victories, plus a 6-0 win over Florida A&M yesterday that the Seminoles have posted to start 2008.

Florida State powered past Jacksonville en route to that 50-0 record today, posting all nine wins in straight sets with no tie-breakers. Junior Ania Rynarzewska and senior Tapiwa Marobela clinched the doubles point for the Seminoles with an 8-2 win over Lena Xu and Juliana Umeki 8-2. Sophomore Jessica Wente posted the third singles victory of the day to give Florida State the win with a 6-1, 6-1 defeat of the Dolphins' Iva Jaresova.

"The girls did a great job of just coming out and taking care of business," said Hyde. "They worked hard to improve in the last week. Our goal was to take advantage of having one more opportunity to compete and focus on fine-tuning some things, which we did. I'm very proud of the girls' effort. It's going to be exciting to see how they do as we start getting into the meat of our season in the next couple months with some high-level SEC and ACC tennis."

The Seminoles will start facing some of that high-level SEC talent this Friday, Feb. 15 against No. 29 Auburn at 3:00 p.m. in Tallahassee. They will also face No. 5 Florida, No. 34 LSU and No. 9 Miami before the end of February.

Doubles
No. 1: Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Jaresova/Soldatova (JU) 8-1
No. 2: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Carrero/Willi (JU) 8-3
No. 3: Tapiwa Marobela/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Umeki/Xu (JU) 8-2
Singles
No. 1: #16 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Lena Xu (JU) 6-2, 6-2
No. 2: Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Leana Willi (JU) 6-3, 6-1
No. 3: #60 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Tatiana Soldatova (JU) 6-2, 6-4
No. 4: Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Iva Jaresova (JU) 6-1, 6-1
No. 5: Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Fernanda Carrero (JU) 6-1, 6-3
No. 6: Federica Suess (FSU) d. Juliana Umeki (JU) 6-4, 6-1

FSU Women's Tennis Continues To Roll With Win Over No. 30 Auburn.

Seminoles improved to 7-0 on the season and extended match-win streak to 54 with 5-2 win.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - The 22nd-ranked Florida State women's tennis team continued their dual match winning streak on Friday as the squad improved to 7-0 with a win over No. 30 Auburn (4-2). Facing their toughest opponent to date, FSU won four of six singles matches and the doubles point to down the Tigers 5-2. Florida State extended its match win streak to 54 before the run was broken in the second singles match of the day.

"Going into today we knew it was going to be a bit of a dog fight because Auburn is a very competitive team," said FSU Head Coach Jennifer Hyde. "We knew that we were going to have to match and exceed that (competitiveness). We did not play our best tennis but more importantly we had a willingness to hang in there and make them hit one more ball, to stay in points a little bit longer and that made a huge difference today."

Despite seeing Katie Rybakova, the 16th-ranked player in the nation, fall in a dual match for the first time in her collegiate career the Seminoles went on to win the next three matches to secure the victory. The win increased FSU's lead in the all-time series with Auburn to 12-2.

"One of the great things about this team is they have such a great competitive spirit," said Hyde. "That isn't something you can really coach or teach. They either have it or they don't. That was great to see."

Federica Seuss got Florida State off to a great start. The freshman from Germany recorded the first singles win of the day playing in the sixth slot as she dispatched Auburn freshman Gaby Beelen 6-2, 6-3. It improved Seuss' record to a perfect 8-0 on the year.

Auburn evened the singles up at 1-1 when sophomore Fani Chifchieva knocked off FSU's No. 1 singles player Rybokova 6-3, 7-6 (7-3). Even with the loss Rybokova seemed to lift the Seminoles as she fought back from 5-1 down to send the second set into a tie-breaker. At one point the freshman was down to her last point in the seventh game but she came back and won four straight games.

"Anytime people next to you on a court are hanging in there and they are close to losing but they keep holding on and keep pushing, it makes everyone on the courts better," said Hyde. "Katie did show a lot of courage today hanging in there and trying to stay in there as long as possible. I do think that really helped Lauren (Macfarlane) who was playing on the court next to her. She was in a really tight match in the second set. It allowed her to stay focused and it kept the crowd in the match. It was good to see Katie hang in there as long as she did."

Following the first Seminole loss in a dual match this season, FSU responded as Carolin Walter, Lauren Macfarlane and Jessica Wente all went on to close out their matches. Walter won 6-3, 6-3 in the third slot, Macfarlane picked up a big win on court two 6-4, 7-5 to clinch the victory and Wente then added to the point total by storming back from a loss in the first set to win her match 3-6, 6-3, 7-5.

"It was great to be tested," said Hyde. "We needed a match where we had to perform under pressure. This is a great match for us going forward with Florida on Wednesday night."

Earlier in the day FSU won all three doubles matches to take a 1-0 lead heading into singles. Wente and Macfarlane got things started with their 11th straight doubles victory downing Auburn's No. 2 doubles team 8-5. Rybakova and Ania Rynarzewska won their match on court three 8-6 and then Walter and Seuss closed the doubles out with an 8-7 (7-2) win.

The Seminoles will take their perfect record to Gainesville Wednesday night as the team looks to break a 31-game streak without a win against the Gators. The two rivals will meet at 5:00 p.m.

"We are excited to play Florida in Gainesville and the girls are gong to be geared up and ready to go," said Hyde. "We expect it to be a crazy crowd in Gainesville. We are looking forward to it. We are looking forward to coming in there and seeing what we can do."

Doubles
No. 1: Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Fani Chifchieva/Melissa Konig (Aub) 8-7(2)
No. 2: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Whitney Chappell/Alex Haney (Aub) 8-5
No. 3: #34 Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Gaby Beelen/Jill Hastenrath (Aub) 8-6
Singles
No. 1: Fani Chifchieva (Aub) d. #16 Katie Rybakova (FSU) 6-3, 7-6(3)
No. 2: Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Alex Haney (Aub) 7-5, 6-4
No. 3: #60 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Whitney Chappell (Aub) 6-3, 6-3
No. 4: Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Melissa Konig (Aub) 3-6, 6-3, 7-5
No. 5: Jill Hastenrath (Aub) d. Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 6-2, 7-5
No. 6: Federica Suess (FSU) d. Gaby Beelen (Aub) 6-2, 6-3

Macfarlane Gets Big Win, No. 20 FSU Women's Tennis Falls to No. 5 Florida.

Sophomore pulls out Seminoles' only win over No. 58-ranked player in the country.

GAINESVILLE, FL - Sophomore Lauren Macfarlane downed the No. 58-ranked player in the country as the No. 20 Florida State women's tennis squad fell 6-1 to No. 5 Florida. The Seminoles pushed two Gators to three sets and avoided a shutout in their 32nd face-off against their in-state rivals.

Macfarlane (Ogden, Utah) dominated Florida's Megan Alexander in straight sets, 6-3, 6-1 on court two to give the Seminoles their only match point of the night. Senior Carolin Walter (Bingen, Germany) pushed No. 26 Csilla Borsanyi to three sets after a 7-5 victory in the first set and a 4-6 loss in the second. Freshman Federica Suess also won her first set to push No. 64-ranked Anastasia Revzina to fight for the win.

Florida State, now 7-1, will begin preparations to face No. 35 Louisiana State University on Sunday, Feb. 24 at the Scott Speicher Tennis Center at 12:00 p.m.

Doubles
No. 1: #15 Megan Alexander/Marrit Boonstra (UF) d. Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) 8-4
No. 2: Whitney Benik/Lolita Frangulyan (UF) d. Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) 8-5
No. 3: Julia Cohen/Anastasia Revzina (UF) d. #40 Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 8-5
Singles
No. 1: #74 Julia Cohen (UF) d. #46 Katie Rybakova (FSU) 6-3, 6-3
No. 2: Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. #58 Megan Alexander (UF) 6-1, 6-0
No. 3: #26 Csilla Borsanyi (UF) d. Carolin Walter (FSU) 5-7, 6-4, 10-6
No. 4: Whitney Benik (UF) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-2, 6-4
No. 5: Marrit Boonstra (UF) d. Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 6-2, 6-4
No. 6: #64 Anastasia Revzina (UF) d. Federica Suess (FSU) 2-6, 6-3, 6-1

No. 20 FSU Women's Tennis Moves to 8-1 With Win over No. 35 LSU.

The Seminoles remain undefeated at home this season with their second victory over a ranked opponent.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - With one final swing of her racquet, Florida State freshman Federica Suess ended a difficult, three-set battle to give the No. 20 Seminoles (8-1) their 14th-straight win at home over No. 35 Louisiana State (5-2) on Sunday, Feb. 24.

"This was definitely a total team effort," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "It's always good when everyone contributes in one way or another and that's what it took for us to get the job done today."

For just the second time in her young career, Suess (Ludwigshafen, Germany) dropped her first set 2-6 and was forced to ink her 19th victory of the year in the final two sets 6-1, 6-4 to give Florida State the win.

"For Federica, clinching the team win at number six as a freshman was just great," said Hyde. "Now she has that experience under belt that she will be able to use later in the season."

Senior Carolin Walter (Bingen, Germany) picked up the Seminoles' first singles win of the afternoon with a 7-5, 6-1 defeat of the Tigers' Tiffany Tucker on court three. Just after that, sophomore Lauren Macfarlane (Odgen, Utah) kept her spring undefeated streak alive with her eighth-straight dual match victory over LSU's Mykala Hedberg 6-3, 6-2.

"Carolin came through with a big victory that really opened everything up for us," said Hyde. "And Lauren really continued the dominance that has characterized her playing style all season."

After Suess clinched the team victory at 4-2, junior Ania Rynarzewska (Inowroclaw, Poland) dug in on court five to win a third-set tie breaker 11-9 giving Florida State its fifth victory of the day 6-4, 3-6, 1-0 (11-9) over the Tigers' Nicole Kantor.

Freshman No. 46 Katie Rybakova (Coral Springs, Fla.) also put forth a tremendous effort on the center court in an attempt to upset LSU's No. 15 Megan Falcon, but Rybakova fell short 5-7, 3-6.

Macfarlane and fellow sophomore Jessica Wente (Whitehouse, Texas) also clinched the doubles point for the Seminoles earlier in the day with an 8-6 victory over the Tigers' Staten Spencer and Nicole Kantor. Rynarzewska and senior Tapiwa Marobela (Gabarone, Botswana) picked up Florida State's first doubles win with an 8-1 routing of Tucker and Hannah Robinson.

Florida State will try to advance its home winning streak to 15 this Friday, Feb. 29 against its first ACC opponent of the season, Miami, at 3:00 p.m.

Doubles
No. 1: Megan Falcon/Mykala Hedberg (LSU) d. Katie Rybakova/Carolin Walter (FSU) 8-3
No. 2: Tapiwa Marobela/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Hannah Robinson/Tiffany Tucker (LSU) 8-1
No. 3: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Nicole Kantor/Staten Spencer (LSU) 8-6
Singles
No. 1: #15 Megan Falcon (LSU) d. #46 Katie Rybakova (FSU) 7-5, 6-3
No. 2: Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Mykala Hedberg (LSU) 6-3, 6-2
No. 3: Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Tiffany Tucker (LSU) 7-5, 6-1
No. 4: Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Nicole Kantor (LSU) 6-4, 3-6, 11-9
No. 5: Hannah Robinson (LSU) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-3, 6-1
No. 6: Federica Suess (FSU) d. Staten Spencer (LSU) 2-6, 6-1, 6-4

No. 20 Florida State Upsets No. 10 Rival Miami 5-2.

Florida State defeated Miami for only the third time in program history.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - The No. 20 Florida State women's tennis team upset No. 10 Miami at home at the Scott Speicher Tennis Courts. The Seminoles (9-1) defeated the Hurricanes (7-3) 5-2 with freshman Federica Suess clinching the victory today, February 29, 2008. This is the Seminoles first victory over Miami since 2000 and the first win for head coach Jennifer Hyde over the Hurricanes throughout her coaching and playing career at Florida State.

"We have been working really hard on doubles in trying to get combinations that work," stated Hyde. "We've been working on a lot of specific things with the girls individually. It's great to see these things paying off. This is such a competitive conference; I think that this definitely gives us confidence with regards to conference play."

The Seminoles started strong in doubles competition winning the first two matches. Senior Carolin Walter (Bingen, Germany) and freshman Katie Rybakova (Coral Springs, Fla.) defeated Bianca Eichkorn and Caren Seenauth 8-1 while sophomores Jessica Wente (Whitehouse, Texas) and Lauren Macfarlane (Ogden, Utah) beat Gina Sabatino and Michaella Kissell 8-5 to win the first point.

In singles play, Florida State won the first three matches to make the score 4-0, clinching the Seminoles upset. Walter defeated No. 70 Kissell on court three 6-1, 6-2 while No. 46 Rybakova played an exciting match against No. 80 Romy Farah winning 6-4, 4-6, 6-0. Freshman Federica Suess clinched the victory for the Seminoles winning 6-1, 2-6, 6-3 against Sabatino on court six.

Adding the final point to the Seminoles victory was Wente on court four disappointing No. 62 Eichkorn 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-4).

"Obviously it is very important to win against such a good team because it gives you the confidence you need to beat all those top-10 teams in the country," stated Suess.

The Seminoles return to the court Sunday, March 2 against FIU at 10 a.m. Admission is free for all fans.

Doubles
No. 1: #35 Romy Farah/Laura Vallverdu (UM) d. Tapiwa Marobela/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 8-6
No. 2: Katie Rybakova/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Bianca Eichkorn/Caren Seenauth (UM) 8-1
No. 3: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Michaella Kissell/Gina Sabatino (UM) 8-5
Singles
No. 1: #14 Laura Vallverdu (UM) d. Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) 7-6(4), 6-3
No. 2: #46 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. #80 Romy Farah (UM) 6-4, 4-6, 6-0
No. 3: Carolin Walter (FSU) d. #70 Michaella Kissell (UM) 6-1, 6-2
No. 4: Jessica Wente (FSU) d. #62 Bianca Eichkorn (UM) 7-6(4), 7-6(4)
No. 5: Caren Seenauth (UM) d. Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 7-6(1), 6-4
No. 6: Federica Suess (FSU) d. Gina Sabatino (UM) 6-1, 2-6, 6-3

No. 20 FSU Women's Tennis Completes South Florida Sweep With 7-0 Win Over No. 40 FIU.

Seminoles stay undefeated at home in 2008.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - After a huge victory like the No. 20 Florida State women's tennis team had over 10th-ranked rival Miami on Friday, it's very conceivable that the Seminoles could have had a letdown in their Sunday (March 2) match with Florida International. That was anything but the case as Florida State rolled to a 7-0 decision over the Panthers at the Scott Speicher Tennis Center.

FSU improved to 10-1 on the year and stayed undefeated at home. Florida International dropped to 3-6. "We're at the point where the confidence is high, but it's not so much that we can take anyone ever for granted," FSU head coach Jennifer Hyde said of the potential letdown. "FIU has been a dangerous team every year that I've been here and even without a couple of players in the line-up they are unbelievably competitive."

Florida International only had five players make the trip so they forfeited the number six singles position. Sophomore Lauren Macfarlane (Ogden, Utah) cruised through her singles match at number two. She only dropped four games the entire way as she beat Priscilla Castillo 6-2, 6-2.

At the number one spot, freshman Katie Rybakova (Coral Springs, Fla.), the number 46 player in the country, found herself down 1-3 in the first set against Maria Pazo. She came back to pick up two breaks, including the final game of the set, to win 6-4. In the second set, Rybakova and Pazo exchanged five breaks before Rybakova held her final two serves for the 6-3 decision that gave FSU the match.

Sophomore Jessica Wente (Whitehouse, Texas) found herself down nearly the entire first set of her number four match to Maria Vallaciani. Down 5-3, she rallied to tie the match at five then went on to win the first-set tiebreaker 7-1. She got two breaks early in the second set to prevail 7-6 (1), 6-3.

On court three, senior Carolin Walter (Bingen, Germany) started out on fire, winning the first set 6-3 over Marijana Cutuk, but she fell behind 3-1 in the second set. She won the next four games to take a 5-3 advantage, but Cutuk rallied to win the next four for the 7-5 second set victory. With the team match already decided, the number three match was settled in a third-set super tiebreaker that Walter won 10-3.

The closest match of the day was a slugfest on court five. Senior Tapiwa Marobela (Gabarona, Botswana) got a late break in the first set to go up 6-5, but FIU's Maria Spenceley got a break of her own to force the set to a tiebreaker. Marobela cruised to the 7-1 decision to win the first set 7-6 (1). It appeared Marobela was going to run away with the match as she went up 3-1 in the second set, but Spenceley came back to win five of the last six games to take the second set 6-4. The senior was down nearly the entire third-set super tiebreaker, including 5-7, but she won five of the last six points to prevail 10-8.

"They're all on a mission right now and they don't want to let any opportunities go by," Hyde said of her team. "They could have very easily folded over and said 'yeah we got the point' and just gotten off the court, but they want to win. They're all playing for spots. One of the things that is unique about this year's team is that we've got eight healthy bodies ready so everybody has to take advantage of the opportunities when they get the chance."

The Seminoles got a break in doubles as the Panthers had to default at number three which meant the Seminoles only had to win one of the two matches to claim the doubles point. At number two, Wente and Macfarlene made sure of that as they pick up a pair of breaks early and two more at the end for the 8-2 triumph over Cutuk and Vallasciani.

In the number one position, Walter and Rybakova got off to a fast start with a 3-0 advantage before Pazo and Castillo battled back to tie the bout at 3-3. The Seminole duo cruised from there as they won the last four points for the 8-3 decision.

Florida State will play host to its biggest home match of the regular season next Friday (March 7) when it takes on second-ranked Georgia Tech at 3 p.m.

Doubles
No. 1: Katie Rybakova/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Priscilla Castillo/Maria Pazo (FIU) 8-3
No. 2: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Marijana Cutuk/Maria Vallasciani (FIU) 8-2
No. 3: Tapiwa Marobela/Federica Suess (FSU) d. default (FIU) def
Singles
No. 1: #46 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Maria Pazo (FIU) 6-4, 6-3
No. 2: Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Priscilla Castillo (FIU) 6-2, 6-2
No. 3: Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Marijana Cutuk (FIU) 6-3, 5-7, 7-3
No. 4: Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Maria Vallasciani (FIU) 7-6(1), 6-3
No. 5: Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Maria Spenceley (FIU) 7-6(1), 4-6, 10-8
No. 6: Federica Suess (FSU) d. default (FIU) def

No. 12 Florida State Women's Tennis Falls to No. 42 Clemson At Home.

The Seminoles dropped a 5-2 decision to the conference rival Tigers on Sunday, March 9.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - The clear blue skies above failed to set the tone for the No. 12 Florida State (11-2, 1-1) tennis squad as the team came up short against No. 42 Clemson (5-7, 1-1). The 5-2 loss ended the Seminoles' 16-match win home winning streak and gave the Tigers their seventh-straight win over FSU.

"Credit to Clemson, they didn't give us a lot of wiggle room today," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "They played very aggressive and steady. It was a big wake up call that we really needed."

Florida State started the day slow in doubles, winning just one of three matches. Sophomores Jessica Wente and Lauren Macfarlane picked up their 10th doubles victory of the season with an 8-5 defeat of the Tigers' Alexandra Luc and Ina Hadziselimovic. For a moment it seemed the sophomores' win would push freshman Katie Rybakova and senior Carolin Walter to come back and win the doubles point for FSU, but the duo couldn't make up the deficit and finished the match behind 4-8.

In singles play, No. 74-ranked Macfarlane and No. 104-ranked Walter both came out strong, leading the charge for the Seminoles who needed to post four singles victories to win the match. On court two, Macfarlane rallied back from a 3-5 deficit against Clemson's Estefania Balda to win the first set in a tiebreaker, giving her the motivation to power past Balda in the second set as well for a final score of 7-6(5), 6-2. On court three, Walter also held on to win 6-4, 6-1 over No. 82 Federica van Adrichem, giving the senior her first win over a ranked opponent this season.

"We had a few people really, really show up today and the rest of the people just struggled a little bit getting our teeth into some matches," said Hyde. "When you have a team that's playing steady and a team that isn't completely dialed in, it's going to be a tough result at the end of the day."

While Rybakova, ranked No. 31 in the country, tried to get the Seminoles back on track against No. 3 Ani Majacika on court one, it came down to senior Tapiwa Marobela to keep the Seminoles alive on court five against Clemson's Ina Hadziselimovic. Though Marobela took an early lead, she couldn't hold on as she lost 6-2, 6-3 giving the Tigers their first conference victory of the year.

Rybakova stole a few big points from Tigers' top-five star, but in the end couldn't come down with the victory, losing 6-3, 7-5.

"I think everyone learned a lot from today's match and that's just something we have to continue to do," said Hyde. " But sometimes you can take a lot more from a loss than you can a win."

The Seminoles won't have much time to recover from their first home loss of the season as they embark on a program-first trip to Las Vegas this week to face No. 39 UNLV on Wednesday at 4:00 pm EST.

Doubles
No. 1: Ani Mijacika/Carol Salge (CU) d. Tapiwa Marobela/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 8-2
No. 2: Estefania Balda/Federica van Adrichem (CU) d. Katie Rybakova/Carolin Walter (FSU) 8-4
No. 3: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Ina Hadziselimovic/Alexandra Luc (CU) 8-5
Singles
No. 1: #3 Ani Majicika (CU) d. #31 Katie Rybakova (FSU) 6-3, 7-5
No. 2: #74 Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Estefania Balda (CU) 7-6(5), 6-4
No. 3: #104 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. #82 Federica van Adrichem (CU) 6-4, 6-1
No. 4: Carol Salge (CU) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-4, 6-1
No. 5: Ina Hadziselimovic (CU) d. #118 Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) 6-2, 6-3
No. 6: Alexandra Luc (CU) d. Federica Suess (FSU) 6-0, 7-5

No. 16 FSU Women's Tennis Defeats No. 42 UNLV 7-0.

The Seminoles come up with 11th win of the season in program-first trip to Las Vegas.

LAS VEGAS, NV - The No. 16-ranked Florida State women's tennis squad took a gamble in making the school's first trip to Nevada to play No. 42 UNLV (8-4), but the risk paid off in a 7-0 victory for the Seminoles (11-2, 1-1) on Wednesday, March 12 in Las Vegas.

Despite the shutout score, the Seminoles fought tooth-and-nail with the Rebels up until the very end, pushing three matches into three sets with a couple of close tiebreakers. In one of those gritty battles, sophomore No. 74 Lauren Macfarlane pushed the No. 28 player in the country, Elena Gatcheva, to a third-set tiebreaker, which she won 10-7 to give the Utah-native a 7-6, 4-6, 1-0 upset on the center court.

Fellow sophomore Jessica Wente also picked up a big victory, coming back from a 4-6 deficit in the first set to win 4-6, 6-1, 7-5. Along with Macfarlane, the two sophomores also defeated the Rebels' Alisa Razina and Anna Maskaljun 8-5 on court two in helping the Seminoles earn the doubles match point.

The Seminoles will take a week off before returning to the courts on March 22-23 for a weekend road trip to visit conference-rivals Virginia and No. 46 Virginia Tech.

Doubles
No. 1: Elena Gantcheva/Kristina Nedeltcheva (UNLV) d. #39 Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 8-0
No. 2: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Nikol Dimitrova/Sharon Marin (UNLV) 8-5
No. 3: Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Anna Maskaljun/Alisa Razina (UNLV) 8-6
Singles
No. 1: #73 Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. #28 Elena Gantcheva (UNLV) 7-6(), 4-6, 10-7
No. 2: #31 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Kristina Nedeltcheva (UNLV) 6-3, 6-3
No. 3: #104 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Nikol Dimitrova (UNLV) 6-2, 6-1
No. 4: Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Anna Maskaljun (UNLV) 4-6, 6-1, 7-5
No. 5: Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Adrienn Hidvegi (UNLV) 7-5, 6-4
No. 6: Federica Suess (FSU) d. Sharon Marin (UNLV) 6-7(), 6-4, 10-6

No. 15 FSU Women's Tennis Sweeps No. 47 Virginia Tech 7-0.

The Seminoles picked up their 12th win of the season in Blacksburg today, March 22.

BLACKSBURG, VA - After a much-needed, mid-season rest, Florida State's No.15-ranked women's tennis squad returned to the courts this morning to defeat ACC foes No. 47 Virginia Tech 7-0. The Seminoles (12-2, 2-1) swept both the doubles and singles competitions to remain undefeated against the Hokies (12-6, 0-4).

Senior No. 100 Carolin Walter clinched the Seminoles' 12th victory of the year on court three with a powerful 6-4, 6-0 win over the Hokies' Jessica Long. Florida State sophomore Jessica Wente took the Seminoles' first singles victory of the day with a 6-0, 6-2 defeat of J.J. Larson. Freshman Federica Suess finished next, scoring FSU's third point of the day in a 6-2, 6-0 win over Virginia Tech's Holly Johnson.

Florida State also won the doubles point with a complete sweep of the competition. Walter and Suess also clinched the doubles point with an 8-2 win over the Hokies' Long and Yasmin Hamza. Junior Ania Rynarzewska and freshman Katie Rybakova, the No.53 doubles pairing the country, defeated the Hokies' Jessica Brouwer and J.J. Larson 8-4 for the Seminoles' first victory of the day.

The Seminoles dominated the Hokies across the board, allowing just one match to go into three sets after Rynarzewska dropped her first set 4-6 before rebounding to defeat the Virginia Tech's Brouwer 6-2, 6-3.

Florida State will make the short drive to Charlottesville, Va. to face ACC opponents, No. 50 University of Virginia tomorrow at 12:00 p.m.

Doubles
No. 1: #53 Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Jessica Brouwer/J.J. Larson (VT) 8-4
No. 2: Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Yasmin Hamza/Jessica Long (VT) 8-2
No. 3: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Inga Beerman/Holly Johnson (VT) 8-2
Singles
No. 1: #68 Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Inga Beerman (VT) 6-2, 6-2
No. 2: #33 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Yasmin Hamza (VT) 7-6(), 6-2
No. 3: #100 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Jessica Long (VT) 6-4, 6-0
No. 4: Jessica Wente (FSU) d. J.J. Larson (VT) 6-0, 6-2
No. 5: Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Jessica Brouwer (VT) 4-6, 6-2, 6-3
No. 6: Federica Suess (FSU) d. Holly Johnson (VT) 6-2, 6-0

No. 15 FSU Women's Tennis Drops Close Match to No. 50 UVA 4-3.

The Seminoles fought for a win right up until the final singles match of the day.

CHARLETTESVILLE, VA - It came down to the final singles match, but in the end the No. 15 FSU women's tennis squad could not hold up against No. 50 Virginia, falling 4-3 on the Cavaliers' home court. The Seminoles (12-3, 2-2) ended their road trip in Charlottesville with just their fifth loss to the Cavaliers (7-8, 3-2) in 21 face-offs.

Sophomore Lauren Macfarlane was the last player standing as the day filtered down to the court one match-up between the No. 68-ranked Utah-native and Virginia's Amanda Rales. Up 4-1 in the third set, Macfarlane seemed on pace to secure the Seminole win, but Rales wasn't ready to concede victory. In the end, Macfarlane was undone by the Cavaliers' top player 7-5, 1-6, 7-5.

"I'm very proud of how our girls fought," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "We had every opportunity to win today, but we just couldn't capitalize on those opportunities--sometimes that happens. It wasn't for lack of fight or effort, Virginia just took advantage of some chances they had and in the end it made the difference."

The Seminoles did put up three singles victories over the Cavaliers to force them to take it to the final match. FSU freshmen Katie Rybakova and Federica Suess both came up with wins on courts two and six. Rybakova, ranked No. 33 in the country, defeated Virginia's Jennifer Stevens 6-4, 6-1 while Suess upended Hampton Williams 6-1, 6-4.

Junior Ania Rynarzewska also notched a singles victory as she defeated the Cavaliers' Lara Alexander 6-4, 6-4 in the number five spot.

Florida State also came away with a doubles win as Macfarlane and fellow sophomore Jessica Wente defeated Alexander and Williams 8-4.

"Today was just a great, exciting college match on both sides of the court," said Hyde. "That's why you coach and that's why you play college tennis, it's for matches like that."

The Seminoles will be back in action at home this weekend for a three-match homestand featuring three tough ACC opponents starting with No. 13 North Carolina on Friday, March 28 at the Scott Speicher Tennis Center.

Doubles
No. 1: Lindsey Pereira/Maggie Yahner (UVa) d. Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) 8-3
No. 2: Amanda Rales/Jennifer Stevens (UVa) d. #53 Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 8-2
No. 3: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Lara Alexander/Hampton Williams (UVa) 8-4
Singles
No. 1: Amanda Rales (UVa) d. #68 Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) 7-5, 1-6, 7-5
No. 2: #33 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Jennifer Stevens (UVa) 6-4, 6-1
No. 3: Lindsey Pereira (UVa) d. #100 Carolin Walter (FSU) 6-4, 3-6, 6-4
No. 4: Maggie Yahner (UVa) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-3, 6-2
No. 5: Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Lara Alexander (UVa) 6-4, 6-4
No. 6: Federica Suess (FSU) d. Hampton Williams (UVa) 6-1, 6-4

NO. 21 FSU Women's Tennis Upsets NO. 12 UNC 4-3.

With a powerful win from Carolin Walter, the Seminoles cleaned up the Tarheels at home.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - It was like deja vu for the No. 21 Florida State women's tennis squad. With a crucial conference victory hanging in the balances, it all came down to the final singles match. But this time the Seminoles (13-3, 3-2) came out on top, posting a 4-3 upset over No. 12 North Carolina (12-6, 3-2) at the Scott Speicher Tennis Center on Friday, March 28.

Senior Carolin Walter didn't know the Seminoles' fate was in her hands until her final hit grazed the far inside corner of the court. With a sheepish smile, Walter was enveloped by her team--who had not only avenged a 4-3 loss last weekend at Virginia, but a nasty 7-0 defeat in Chapel Hill last year against the Tarheels.

"Anytime you're in that situation and it's on the line there's a lot of pressure," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "Of course she was so focused she didn't even know she was in that position. But when she realized she'd pulled out the win, you could see the tears of joy in her eyes because we've gone from one extreme to the other in five days."

Walter's 6-4, 7-6(2) victory won in a grinding tiebreaker was a fitting end to the day after the senior and freshman Federica Suess came up just short of a doubles victory in another heart-wrenching tiebreak that kept the Seminoles from securing the doubles point.

Entering the singles competition, FSU needed four wins to take the team victory. The first Seminole to move the team toward its goal was junior Ania Rynarzewska with a dominant 6-2, 6-1 defeat of UNC's Meg Fanjoy on court five.

Next came a major comeback win from sophomore Jessica Wente who was down 1-4 in the first set on court four before rallying back to win seven straight points. In the end Wente overpowered the Tarheels' Laura Reichert 6-4, 6-1 to even the Seminoles' score at 2-2.

"Jess did a great job," said Hyde. "She was down but far from out. She just committed herself to staying in the point and not making any unnecessary mistakes. She stuck with it and I think that win for her was a huge confidence boost."

For a moment after Wente's victory it seemed freshman No. 33 Katie Rybakova might rally back from an 0-3 deficit in her second set on court two. Rybakova pushed Katrina Tsang to the limit, tying the match at 5-5 and forcing her Tarheel opponent to really dig in for the 6-4, 7-5 win.

In the end, it was another freshman, Suess, whose 6-4, 6-1 upset on court six kept the Seminoles alive and gave her doubles partner, Walter, the chance to clinch the win for FSU.

The upset not only gave Florida State a major conference win, but also provided the team substantial momentum going into their two most difficult matches of the season against No. 6 Duke on Sunday, March 30 and No. 3 Georgia Tech on Wednesday, April 2.

"Any win is big," said Hyde. "But we've got some enormous opportunities ahead of us and to take this first one with such spirit is huge for our confidence going into Sunday's match against the Blue Devils."

The Duke game will mark the Seminoles' first encounter with the Blue Devils since beating them for the first time in 24 years last spring in Durham.

Sunday's match will also mark a special occasion as the Seminoles honor those whose lives have been affected by breast cancer with their annual Think Pink game. The event marks the culmination of FSU's season-long campaign to raise money for the Susan G. Komen, For the Cure foundation. So far, Florida State has raised nearly $2,000 for the charity.

As always, free pizza, free T-shirts and a few special prizes will be available to all fans in attendance at the Scott Speicher Tennis Center. The match against Duke is set to get under way at 12:00 p.m.

Doubles
No. 1: #10 Sophie Grabinski/Sanaz Marand (UNC) d. #53 Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 8-3
No. 2: Austin Smith/Katrina Tsang (UNC) d. Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) 9-8(5)
No. 3: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Kaitlin Jurewitz/Laura Reichert (UNC) 8-5
Singles
No. 1: #9 Sanaz Marand (UNC) d. #68 Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) 6-3, 6-3
No. 2: Katrina Tsang (UNC) d. #33 Katie Rybakova (FSU) 6-4, 7-5
No. 3: #100 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Austin Smith (UNC) 6-3, 7-6(2)
No. 4: Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Laura Reichert (UNC) 6-4, 6-1
No. 5: Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Sophie Grabinski (UNC) 6-2, 6-1
No. 6: Federica Suess (FSU) d. Meg Fanjoy (UNC) 6-4, 6-1

No. 12 FSU Women's Tennis Falls to No. 6 Duke, Picks Up Big Individual Wins.

The Seminoles upset the No. 3 doubles team and No. 14 singles player in the country.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - Although the No. 12-ranked Florida State women's tennis team dropped a close 4-3 decision to No. 6 Duke, the atmosphere inside Scott Speicher Tennis Center never felt defeated. A team loss to a top-ten conference opponent took a backseat to several huge individual wins that will give the Seminoles (13-3, 3-3) momentum going into Wednesday's final home match against No. 3 Georgia Tech.

"There were a lot of individual hurdles today that some of the girls got over," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "Unfortunately we weren't able to get over a team hurdle, but we came very close. The difference in today's match was that we didn't play the biggest points with the courage that we needed to beat these top ten teams. Still, I'm unbelievably proud of the competitive fire again that the girls displayed."

Freshman Katie Rybakova, ranked 33rd in the nation, had her best match to date in a garnet and gold uniform as she secured a triumphant 7-5, 5-7, 6-4 upset against Duke's No. 14 Ellah Nze.

However, the defeat wasn't Rybakova's crowning accomplishment of the day. Her singles win could not trump the 8-6 victory Rybakova and junior Ania Rynarzewska secured over the No. 3 doubles team in the country, Melissa Mang and Amanda Granson.

"Both of those wins were huge," said Hyde. "With these big singles matches, Katie has been so close on so many occasions. She has been right in the mix with so many of these players and for Katie to get over that hurdle on a day like this was tremendous for her. She needed that win and she went out and got it."

Coupled with a 6-2, 7-5 win from fellow freshman Federica Suess earlier in the day, Rybakova's singles win meant that the much-coveted conference victory came down to the final two matches on court.

For the second time in three days senior Carolin Walter felt the brunt of the team's hopes resting on her shoulders. The German-native forced the No. 17-ranked player in the country Reka Zsilinszka to earn her win in the third set. Although Walter could not hold on for the win, falling 6-2, 2-6, 6-2, she helped keep the momentum moving for the Seminoles onto the spotlight court where teammate Lauren Macfarlane was battling out Florida State's last singles match of the day.

Macfarlane and Duke's Tara Iyer went round and round all day, pushing each other to the limit. The Utah-native came up short in the first set 5-7, powered back to win the second 6-4 and entered into a grinding third set for the win. More than an hour after the Seminoles loss was decided, Macfarlane kept at her opponent straight into a third-set tiebreaker point where she finally earned a powerful court one victory 7-6(5).

Florida State might have been able to pull out the win over the Blue Devils had they been able to secure the doubles point earlier in the day. Rynarzewska and Rybakova's triumph on court one gave the Seminoles a chance to get an early lead on the Blue Devils.

But sophomores Macfarlane and Jessica Wente fell short 8-3 to Ellah Nze and Zsilinszka in the number three doubles spot, leaving the crucial point in the hands of Walter and Suess on court two.

The German duo kept the pace with Duke's Tory Zawacki and Jess Robinson throughout most of the match. In the end, the Seminoles could not hold on, falling just short of victory with a 9-7 final score.

In singles play, Rynarzewska nearly forced a third set on court six to fight for the Seminoles' second singles win of the day, but couldn't hold on, succumbing to a 6-4, 7-5 loss to Robinson.

Down on court four, Wente did force a third set after losing her first 6-2. The Texas-native pushed her opponent, Mang, to the limit but ran out of steam in the final set, losing 6-2, 2-6, 6-1 in the end.

"They're working very hard out there," said Hyde. "There are definitely a lot of very positive things that have happened in the last week that we will definitely take as momentum into our final home match."

Florida State will be back in action Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. to face the defending national champion Yellow Jackets in the Seminoles' final home match of the season. The Black Out match will also serve as senior day for Walter and Tapiwa Marobela.

Free pizza, T-shirts and prizes will be available for all fans in attendance.

Doubles
No. 1: #53 Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. #3 Amanda Granson/Melissa Mang (Duke) 8-6
No. 2: Jess Robinson/Tory Zawacki (Duke) d. Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) 9-7
No. 3: Ellah Nze/Reka Zsilinszka (Duke) d. Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) 8-3
Singles
No. 1: #68 Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Tara Iyer (Duke) 5-7, 6-4, 7-6(5)
No. 2: #33 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. #14 Ellah Nze (Duke) 7-5, 5-7, 6-4
No. 3: #17 Reka Zsilinszka (Duke) d. #100 Carolin Walter (FSU) 6-2, 2-6, 6-2
No. 4: Melissa Mang (Duke) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-2, 2-6, 6-1
No. 5: Federica Suess (FSU) d. Amanda Granson (Duke) 6-2, 7-5
No. 6: Jess Robinson (Duke) d. Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 6-4, 7-5

No. 18 FSU Drops Close Match to No. 2 G-Tech, Freshmen Pick Up Huge Wins.

Rybakova destroys the No. 4 player in the country, Suess defeats No. 39.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - Despite Mother Nature's best efforts, No. 18 Florida State (13-5, 3-4) and No. 2 Georgia Tech (14-4, 6-1) finally completed a match originally scheduled to take place March 7. After a three-and-a-half hour rain delay, the Seminoles came out strong in singles play behind freshman No. 30 Katie Rybakova's trouncing of the Yellow Jackets' No. 4 Amanda McDowell, but couldn't hold on for a team victory, falling 3-4.

Rybakova downed her second top-15 player in four days with a dominant 6-0. 6-2 upset of McDowell on court two. Meanwhile, fellow freshman Federica Suess also posted a solid 7-6(2), 6-3 win over No. 39 Kirsten Flower in the five spot. With a third, 3-6, 6-1, 6-0 comeback victory from senior Carolin Walter on court three against No. 36 Whitney McCray, the Seminoles' three singles upsets had them in prime position to win the team victory on either court four or six.

Junior Ania Rynarzewska was down 4-0 in her third set when Walter wrapped up, leaving two Seminoles standing with the team victory in their hands. Next door on court four, sophomore Jessica Wente was up 2-0 in her second set after winning the first set 6-4. Unfortunately, with her match at 2-1, Wente went down with leg cramps. The Texas-native did her best to tough it out, but after dropping two more games to make the score 2-3, she went down again and had to be carried off the court.

Florida State's hopes for a big conference victory fell to Rynarzewska, who was still trailing 4-0. Although she fought back to pick up two games and push the Seminoles toward a win, in the end #100 Noelle Hickey got the best of Rynarzewska with a 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 victory.

Sophomore Lauren Macfarlane also lost a tough battle on the spotlight court. After dropping the first set to No. 6 Kristi Miller 6-3, Macfarlane tried to battle back in the second set, but Miller overpowered her 6-2.

The Seminoles started doubles play against the Yellow Jackets at 2:30 p.m., the match's originally scheduled time, but were forced to stop because of lightning after about an hour. When things resumed, Georgia Tech made quick work in securing the doubles point with a pair of 8-6 victories over sophomores Wente and Macfarlane and seniors Walter and Tapiwa Marobela.

Wente and Macfarlane fell first on court three to McDowell and Flower. Moments later, Walter and Marobela succumbed to McCray and Hickey on court two. Prior to starting their final doubles match at home, the two seniors were honored in a special Senior Day ceremony for all their hard work and dedication to the Seminoles.

With the doubles point decided, the two teams chose not to finish the match on center court between. When the match was stopped, Rybakova and Rynarzewska were up 6-5 over the Yellow Jackets' Miller and Sasha Krupina.

Florida State will be back in action on Friday in College Park, Md. The team will take on ACC opponents, the Maryland Terrapins at 3:00 p.m.

Doubles
No. 1: #33 Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) vs. Sasha Krupina/Kristi Miller (GT) 5-6 dnf
No. 2: Noelle Hickey/Whitney McCray (GT) d. Tapiwa Marobela/Carolin Walter (FSU) 8-6
No. 3: Kirsten Flower/Amanda McDowell (GT) d. Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) 8-6
Singles
No. 1: #6 Kristi Miller (GT) d. #72 Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) 6-3, 6-2
No. 2: #30 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. #4 Amanda McDowell (GT) 6-0, 6-2
No. 3: #92 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. #36 Whitney McCray (GT) 3-6, 6-1, 6-0
No. 4: #76 Kristy Striplin (GT) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 4-6, 2-3 ret
No. 5: Federica Suess (FSU) d. #39 Kirsten Flower (GT) 7-5(2), 6-3
No. 6: #100 Noelle Hickey (GT) d. Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 6-4, 1-6, 6-2

Seminoles Top Terrapins: No. 18 FSU Women's Tennis Defeats Maryland 5-2.

Florida State won the doubles point and posted four singles victories for the conference win.

COLLEGE PARK, MD - Sophomore Lauren Macfarlane took the final swing to end a short skid and secure a conference win for the No. 18 Florida State women's tennis squad. The Seminoles defeated Maryland 5-2 on the Terrapins' home court after picking up the doubles point and four singles victories.

"It's been a very intense 10 days playing UNC, Duke and Georgia Tech," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "We've been burning it at both ends and with a few players out of the line-up, the girls did a great job of stepping up and readying themselves for more ACC competition today."

Macfarlane, ranked No. 72 in the nation, rebounded from a tough loss Wednesday night at home against Georgia Tech to defeat Maryland's Michal Amir 8-3 on court one and secure the Seminole team victory. The win was Macfarlane's second over the Terrapins' top player in as many years.

Freshman No. 30 Katie Rybakova continued her newfound bulldozing streak to earn the Seminoles' first singles victory on court two with a 6-2, 6-3 defeat over Maryland's Karin Lundmark. Rybakova has now won three straight conference matches including two huge victories over the #4 and #14 ranked players in the country.

Senior Carolin Walter won the Seminoles' second singles point with a 6-4, 6-1 defeat of the Terappins' Maggie MacKeever in the number three spot. Freshman Bonny Davidson had a chance to clinch the match after Walter's win, but the rookie's effort at forcing a third set fell short on court six, losing 6-2, 7-5(2) to Oksana Krutiyenko.

Fellow newcomer Federica Suess came away with a victory after the team match was won. Suess was up 3-0 over Julia Huschke of UM in the third set when her opponent retired, giving the freshman her sixth consecutive victory 4-6, 6-2, 3-0 (ret.).

Senior Tapiwa Marobela finished singles last for Florida State, nearly pulling out the team's fifth singles win on court four in a close third set. Marobela fell to 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 to Maryland's Lisa Miller.

The Seminoles secured the doubles point earlier in the day with two big doubles wins. Macfarlane and fellow sophomore Jessica Wente defeated Huscke and Lundmark 8-5 on court two to clinch the point while seniors Walter and Marobela pounced on MacKeever and Krutiyenko 8-2 on court two.

Rybakova and junior Ania Rynarzewska, ranked No. 33 in the country, were upset on court one by Amir and Miller 8-3.

The Seminoles will be back in action on Sunday against Boston College at 9:30 a.m.

Doubles
No. 1: Michal Amir/Lisa Miller (UMd) d. #33 Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 8-3
No. 2: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Julia Huschke/Karin Lundmark (UMd) 8-5
No. 3: Tapiwa Marobela/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Oksana Krutiyenko/Maggie MacKeever (UMd) 8-2
Singles
No. 1: #72 Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Michal Amir (UMd) 6-1, 7-6(4)
No. 2: #30 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Karin Lundmark (UMd) 6-2, 6-3
No. 3: #92 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Maggie MacKeever (UMd) 6-4, 6-1
No. 4: Lisa Miller (UMd) d. Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) 3-6, 6-3, 7-5
No. 5: Federica Suess (FSU) d. Julia Huschke (UMd) 4-6, 6-2, 3-0 ret
No. 6: Oksana Krutiyenko (UMd) d. Bonny Davidson (FSU) 6-2, 7-5(4)

No. 18 FSU Women's Tennis Completes Weekend Road Sweep Against Boston College.

The Seminoles defeated the Eagles 6-1 in Boston to give them their second win of the weekend.

BOSTON, MA - No. 18 Florida State clinched their second win of the weekend as the women's tennis squad defeated conference opponents Boston College 6-1. Senior Carolin Walter clinched the win on the number three singles court with a dominant 6-0, 6-3 victory to keep the Seminoles on the right track heading into the final week of the regular season.

"It's always good to go 2-0 on an ACC road trip weekend," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "The girls did a great job taking care of business. In the week ahead we will be working hard on our doubles and will continue to work towards finding the pairings that we will use as we head into the post season."

Prior to Walter's winning match on court three, the Seminoles secured two singles victories in the two and four spots. Freshman Katie Rybakova continued her winning streak with her fourth-straight singles win, pulling out a 6-3, 7-6 victory on court two.

Just after she finished up with the Terrapins, sophomore Jessica Wente took her first singles win since having to retire early against Georgia Tech last Wednesday, April 2, with leg cramps. Wente defeated the Eagles' Alina Sullivan in straight sets, 6-1, 6-4 in the four spot, setting up Walter to take the team win.

Senior Tapiwa Marobela and freshman Bonny Davidson also came up with a pair of wins on the far courts. Marobela posted a 6-2, 6-1 defeat of Boston College's Katharine Attwell on court five while Davidson earned her win over Gia Nafarette in a tough three-set battle ending 4-6, 6-4, 10-2.

On the center court, sophomore Lauren Macfarlane dropped a tight match that ended in a third-set tiebreaker after the team match was won. The Ogden, Utah-native lost to Lana Krasnopolsky 3-6, 6-4, 10-8.

In doubles competition, Florida State took two victories at the top and bottom of the line-up. Walter and freshman Federica Suess defeated Sullivan and Alison Wagner 8-4 on the spotlight court while the sophomore sensations overturned their Boston College opponents 8-2.

On court two, Marobela and Rybakova fell short 8-5 to Nafarette and Krasnopolsky.

"We still have a lot of work ahead," said Hyde. "I feel that our best tennis is yet to come. We are gearing up for the final push of our ACC season and look forward to one last weekend of travel before the ACC Championships."

Florida State will head to North Carolina next weekend for a pair of conference match-ups against Wake Forest and N.C. State. The ACC Championships begin April 17 in Altamonte Springs, Fla.

Doubles
No. 1: Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Alina Sullivan/Alison Wagner (BC) 8-4
No. 2: Lana Krasnopolsky/Gia Nafarette (BC) d. Tapiwa Marobela/Katie Rybakova (FSU) 8-5
No. 3: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Jacqueline Mabatah/Sarah Svoboda (BC) 8-2
Singles
No. 1: Lana Krasnopolsky (BC) d. #72 Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) 3-6, 6-4, 10-8
No. 2: #30 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Lauren Cash (BC) 6-3, 7-6()
No. 3: #92 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Sarah Svoboda (BC) 6-0, 6-3
No. 4: Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Alina Sullivan (BC) 6-1, 6-4
No. 5: Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Katharine Attwell (BC) 6-2, 6-1
No. 6: Bonny Davidson (FSU) d. Gia Nafarette (BC) 4-6, 6-4, 10-2

No. 19 Florida State Women's Tennis Axes Wake Forest 6-1.

The Seminoles dominated the Demon Deacons to open their last weekend of regular season play.

WINSTON-SALEM, NC - No. 19 Florida State (15-5, 6-4) kicked off its last weekend of women's tennis regular season play with a 6-1 stomping of No. 32 Wake Forest (8-10, 4-6). Senior Carolin Walter roared back after losing her first set to give FSU the team win and move her season record to 17-3.

"The girls did a great job taking care of business today," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "We have a day off tomorrow so we can get in some rest. After that we're excited to close out our regular season ACC schedule against NC State on Sunday."

Walter defeated the Demon Deacons' Emilee Malvehy 1-6, 6-1, 6-2 on court three to give the Seminoles their fourth point of the match including Wake Forest's two forfeits in doubles and singles.

Prior to Walter's match-clenching win, freshman Katie Rybakova and sophomore Lauren Macfarlane picked up a pair of wins at the top of the order to put the Seminoles in a position to win the team match. No. 30 Rybakova defeated Sasha Kulikova 6-3, 6-2 on the spotlight court to extend her winning streak to five matches while No. 72 Macfarlane upended Christian Tara 6-2, 6-2 on court two.

After the team match was decided, freshman Federica Suess closed out the day with a 6-3, 7-6 victory over Aileen Davis. Suess is now 8-1 in the ACC with eight straight victories dating backing to the Seminoles' 7-0 win over UNLV on March 12.

The Seminoles also earned the doubles point with Macfarlane and fellow sophomore Jessica Wente's 8-1 victory over Malvehy and Davis on court two. Walter and Suess completed the Seminole sweep in pairs with a close 9-7 defeat of Kulikova and Tara in the number two spot.

Because of injuries, Wake Forest did not post players on singles court six or doubles court three, giving senior Tapiwa Marobela a singles and doubles victory by default along with Rybakova.

Florida State will be back in action on Sunday, April 13 against N.C. State in Raleigh-Durham, N.C. The match will close out FSU's regular season competition. Play begins Thursday, April 17 at the ACC Championships in Altamonte Springs, Fla.

Doubles
No. 1: Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Sasha Kulikova/Christian Tara (Wake) 9-7
No. 2: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Aileen Davis/Emilee Malvehy (Wake) 8-1
No. 3: Tapiwa Marobela/Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Default (Wake) def
Singles
No. 1: #30 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Sasha Kulikova (Wake) 6-3, 6-2
No. 2: #72 Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Christian Tara (Wake) 6-2, 6-2
No. 3: #92 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Emilee Malvehy (Wake) 1-6, 6-1, 6-2
No. 4: Katarina Reveche (Wake) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-3, 6-3
No. 5: Federica Suess (FSU) d. Aileen Davis (Wake) 6-3, 7-6()
No. 6: Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Default (Wake) def

No. 19 Florida State Women's Tennis Falls In Final Regular Season Match.

The Seminoles suffered their fifth conference loss of the season at No. 45 N.C. State.

RALEIGH, NC - It was an all-too-familiar scene for the No. 19 Florida State women's tennis squad. Another achingly close ACC match came down to the final singles court. Sophomore Jessica Wente fought back from a first set loss to force a decision in the third, but came up short as the Seminoles' hopes were dashed in a 4-3 loss against No. 45 N.C. State (12-9, 5-6) at the J.W. Isenhour Tennis Center on April 13.

The Seminoles (16-6, 6-5) suffered through an agonizing three-hour match on court four as Wente and the Wolfpack's Julia Roach battled tooth and nail for the team victory. A close first set ended in a 7-5 loss for Wente, but the Texas-native rallied in the second set for a 6-4 victory. Roach started to inch away in the final set but Wente clung to her opponent up until the end when Roach won 6-4 to ink the Wolfpack's fifth conference win of the season.

Prior to Wente's loss, the Seminoles won two singles matches starting with sophomore No. 72 Lauren Macfarlane who toppled N.C. State's Daria Petrovic 6-2, 6-1 on court two. Freshman No. 30 Katie Rybakova pulled out a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Berkeley Brock on court one to extend her winning streak to six and give Wente a chance to earn the team win.

Seniors Carolin Walter and Tapiwa Marobela both had rough outings in Raleigh. Walter dropped just her fourth match of the season to Lenka Hojckova in the number three spot 6-2, 6-2 while Marobela also surrendered 6-2, 6-2 to Catherine Grotz on court five.

Freshman Federica Suess, who had two losses for the season prior to today, snapped an eight-match win streak as she fell to Neils Barringer 6-4, 6-4 on the bottom court to force Rybakova to keep the Seminoles in the match.

The Seminoles did come up victorious in doubles competition as Wente and Macfarlane defeated Brock and Petrovic 8-4 for the duo's 16th win of the season while the senior tandem downed Barringer and Roach 8-5 to clinch the doubles point.

Rybakova and Rynarzewska, ranked No. 33 in the country, fell 8-2 to Grotz and Hojckova on court one.

Florida State will be back in action on Thursday, April 17, in the first round of the 2008 ACC Women's Tennis Tournament in Altamonte Springs, Fla. Seeds and schedules for the tournament will be announced tomorrow, Monday, April 14.

Doubles
No. 1: Catherine Grotz/Lenka Hojckova (NCS) d. #33 Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 8-2
No. 2: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Berkeley Brock/Daria Petrovic (NCS) 8-4
No. 3: Tapiwa Marobela/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Neils Barringer/Julia Roach (NCS) 8-5
Singles
No. 1: #30 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Berkeley Brock (NCS) 6-4, 6-3
No. 2: #72 Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Daria Petrovic (NCS) 6-2, 6-1
No. 3: Lenka Hojckova (NCS) d. #92 Carolin Walter (FSU) 6-2, 6-2
No. 4: Julia Roach (NCS) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 7-5, 4-6, 6-4
No. 5: Catherine Grotz (NCS) d. Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) 6-2, 6-2
No. 6: Neils Barringer (NCS) d. Federica Suess (FSU) 6-4, 6-4

No. 19 Florida State Bounces BC, Moves To Second Round of ACC Tournament.

The Seminoles took down Boston College 5-0 to advance in the conference championships.

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, FL - As day one at the ACC Women's Tennis Championships came to a close, No. 19 Florida State had to ask a burning question: Did we go back in time? The Seminoles' 4-0 victory over 11th-seeded Boston College is the exact same verdict FSU had over the Eagles at last year's conference championship. And just like the 2007 Tournament, the Seminoles are now in line to play No. 11 Miami at 3:00 p.m. tomorrow at Sanlando Park.

But that's where the Seminoles hope the similarities will end. One year ago today, the team fell in a heartbreaking 4-3 loss to their only in-state conference rivals. This time around the Seminoles have a second chance and they are looking for revenge.

"It's always good to have that first round match out of the way," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "You get those first-round jitters out of your system and work out those kinks. Now we are up against Miami like we did in the quarterfinals last year, but we're altogether avoiding that same feeling we had about them last time."

If Florida State's first match of the tournament is any indication, the team is on a roll. The Seminoles upheld their undefeated streak against Boston College by posting a dominant win over the Eagles on the courts today.

Sophomore Lauren Macfarlane, sealed the Seminoles' fifth win over BC with a 6-0, 6-1 defeat of Dasha Cherkasov on court two at almost the exact same time fellow sophomore Jessica Wente finished up on court four with a 6-0. 6-3 win over Katharine Attwell.

Freshman Federica Suess started the Seminoles' roll in doubles with a 6-0,6-1 dominance of Boston College's Gia Nafarrete on court six. Shortly thereafter, senior Carolin Walter finished her work on court three with a 6-0, 6-1 defeat of Lauren Cash.

Walter and Suess also lead the way in doubles competition. The duo of German natives pounced on Attwell and Allina Sullivan for a, 8-2 win. At the time, Macfarlane and Wente were down 6-3 on court three, but after their teammates' victory the young veterans stormed back for an incredible 8-6 defeat of Nafarette and Lana Krasnopolsky.

Florida State will be back on the courts tomorrow for its second face-off of the season with No. 11 Miami. The two squads met in Tallahassee on February, the Seminoles picked up a major 5-2 upset in their first conference battle of the season.

Prior to the start of today's match the Seminoles also received word that Macfarlane and freshman Katie Rybakova were both named to this year's All-ACC squad. It is the second straight such honor for Macfarlane and the first for Rybakova.

Doubles
No. 1: #54 Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) vs. Lauren Cash/Dasha Cherkasov (BC) dnf
No. 2: Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Katharine Attwell/Alina Sullivan (BC) 8-2
No. 3: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Lana Krasnopolsky/Gia Nafarrette (BC) 8-6
Singles
No. 1: #24 Katie Rybakova (FSU) vs. Lana Krasnopolsky (BC) dnf
No. 2: #68 Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Dasha Cherkasov (BC) 6-0, 6-1
No. 3: #72 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Lauren Cash (BC) 6-0, 6-1
No. 4: Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Katharine Attwell (BC) 6-0, 6-3
No. 5: Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) vs. Alina Sullivan (BC) dnf
No. 6: Federica Suess (FSU) d. Gia Nafarrette (BC) 6-0, 6-1

No. 19 Florida State Upsets No. 11 Miami In Round Two of ACC Women's Tennis Championships.

The Seminoles are on their way to the third round of the conference tournament for the second time in school history.

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, FL - Different year, different location, different team, different result. A year and one day after ACC in-state rivals Miami ended Florida State's bid at the 2007 ACC Women's Tennis Championship, No. 19 Florida State finally got the revenge they longed for in a 4-2 upset of the No. 11 Hurricanes. The Seminoles will move into the third round against Duke at 1:00 p.m. tomorrow for just the second time in school history.

"What I'm most proud of today is the class and the fight and the passion that my team exhibited," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "I am so proud of the way they handled themselves. There's a lot of diversity in that rivalry with Miami but they were composed and poised and they wanted it more today. I don't know if that was the reason for the outcome, but I have to think that those things pay off at the end of the day."

Tapiwa Marobela waited with bated breath as the final ball from her opponent Caren Seenauth sailed across the net and dropped just out of bounds, giving the senior her biggest win in four years of play at Florida State. Instantly she was swarmed by her teammates as the 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 victory gave the seventh-seeded Seminoles a major upset over the three-seed Miami.

"I knew that I had to win," said Marobela, who started cramping up going into the last point of her match. "I just had to get through it all and win the match for my team."

The win was especially important given that Marobela was also the deciding factor in the 2007 tournament face-off against the Hurricanes.

"This time last year [Marobela] was the last match on against Miami in the quarterfinals and came up just short in a gut-wrenching 7-6 match," said Hyde. "As a senior, to step up and play with so much conviction today to get the win for this team is a defining moment for her. I'm so proud of her heart and her poise today and they way she knew what she had to do and she got it done for this team. That, for Taps, is going to be a career highlight. No question."

Prior to Marobela's finish, fellow senior Carolin Walter and freshman Federica Suess put the Seminoles in position to secure their second win over Miami this season. Walter, ranked No. 74 in the country, dominated play on court three with a 6-4, 6-2 upset of No. 80 Romy Farah while Suess took a 6-3, 6-4 victory on court six over Claudia Wasilewski.

The duo of German natives also pushed the Seminoles to clinch the doubles point earlier in the day as they defeated Seenauth and Bianca Eickhorn 8-6 on court two. Sophomores Jessica Wente and Lauren Macfarlane also took home a doubles victory 8-2 over Michaela Kissell and Gina Sabatino in the three spot. The two victories nullified a difficult 8-0 loss from the Seminoles' No. 54-ranked pairing of junior Ania Rynarzewska and freshman Katie Rybakova. The two could not hold against the No. 21 ranked duo from Miami, Laura Vallverdu and Romy Farah.

Rybakova also had a hard time against Vallverdu in singles, as the No. 24 ranked freshman fell to the No. 22 ranked sophomore 6-4, 6-4. The Seminoles lost a second singles match on court four as Wente fell to Eickhorn 6-4, 6-1. The two losses left Marobela and Macfarlane playing for the team win. Macfarlane had just entered her final set when Marobela ended the four-hour long match on court five.

With revenge sought and won against Miami, the Seminoles will now turn their sights on No. 9 Duke who is seeded second in the tournament bracket. The Seminoles not only have to make up for a close 4-3 loss to the Blue Devils at home earlier this year, but a 5-0 loss during Florida State's only other appearance in the third round of the ACC Tournament in school history. The two schools faced off in 1994 during Hyde's senior year at Florida State and lost.

The match will begin at 1:00 p.m. tomorrow on the courts at Sanlando Park.

Doubles
No. 1: #21 Romy Farah/Laura Vallverdu (UM) d. #54 Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 8-0
No. 2: Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Bianca Eickhorn/Caren Seenauth (UM) 8-6
No. 3: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Michaela Kissell/Gina Sabatino (UM) 8-2
Singles
No. 1: #22 Laura Vallverdu (UM) d. #24 Katie Rybakova (FSU) 6-4, 6-4
No. 2: #68 Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) vs. #57 Michaela Kissell (UM) dnf
No. 3: #72 Carolin Walter (FSU) d. #80 Romy Farah (UM) 6-4, 6-2
No. 4: Bianca Eickhorn (UM) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-4, 6-1
No. 5: Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Caren Seenauth (UM) 2-6, 6-3, 6-3
No. 6: Federica Suess (FSU) d. Claudia Wasilewski (UM) 6-3, 6-4

End of the Road for No. 19 FSU at the 2008 ACC Women's Tennis Championships.

The Seminoles fell 4-2 for their second loss of the season to the Duke Blue Devils.

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, FL - They made history just by appearing in the third round of the ACC Championships, but the No. 19 Florida State Seminoles (18-7, 8-6) could not hold on to ink another page in the record books this year. Despite the team's best efforts, the No. 9 Duke Blue Devils (18-3, 11-2) won the semi-final match 4-2, ending the Seminoles' run at the 2008 ACC Women's Tennis Championships in Altamonte Springs, Fla. at Sanlando Park.

Once again, the weight of the match fell on the shoulders of senior Tapiwa Marobela. After losing her first set 6-2, the Seminole veteran made a valiant effort to come back and win the second set to prolong FSU's chances at a win. But Duke's Amanda Granson was relentless and in the end, after three long days of tennis, Marobela could not hold out as she surrendered her last set on court five 6-4 to give Duke the team win.

"Today was a tough day for the team," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "I have to give credit to Duke though. They came out very strong in singles and played some very good tennis."

Florida State started the match on top as they secured the doubles point with two big victories. Senior Carolin Walter and freshman Federica Suess defeated Duke's Jessi Robinson and Tory Zawacki 8-3 on court two before junior Ania Rynarzewksa and freshman Katie Rybakova fell 8-5 to the No. 3 doubles duo in the country, Granson and Melissa Mang. But sophomores Jessica Wente and Lauren Macfarlane fired back to win a tough 9-7 match on court three and put the Seminoles ahead going into singles.

Rybakova pulled out a huge singles victory on court one over Duke's top player Tara Iyer. The No. 24-ranked Seminole newcomer notched her 11th ACC victory in a 6-4, 6-3 defeat. Unfortunately, Florida State had already lost three singles matches by that point. Suess dropped her match on court six to Robinson 6-3, 6-4 followed by a 6-4, 6-1 loss from No. 68 ranked Macfarlane to No. 19 ranked Ellah Nze. Wente also came up short 6-1, 6-1 on in the four spot against Mang, leaving the match up to Marobela and Walter.

Walter was up 3-2 at one time after winning her first set over Reka Zsilinszka 6-2. But the match ended before the duo could complete play on court three.

"We have a lot of great things to take away from this tournament," said Hyde. "After a few days off we will hit the ground running to prepare for the NCAA Championships."

Florida State will now have to sit and wait for the NCAA to make its decision on what 16 teams will host the first and second round of the national championships on May 9-11. The announcement will be made April 29.

Doubles
No. 1: #3 Melissa Mang/Amanda Granson (Duke) d. #54 Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 8-5
No. 2: Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Jessi Robinson/Tori Zawacki (Duke) 8-3
No. 3: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Ellah Nze/Reka Zsilinszka (Duke) 9-7
Singles
No. 1: #24 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Tara Iyer (Duke) 6-4, 6-3
No. 2: #19 Ellah Nze (Duke) d. #68 Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) 6-4, 6-1
No. 3: #72 Carolin Walter (FSU) vs. #21 Reka Zsilinszka (Duke) dnf
No. 4: Melissa Mang (Duke) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-1, 6-1
No. 5: Amanda Granson (Duke) d. Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) 6-2, 6-4
No. 6: Jessi Robinson (Duke) d. Federica Suess (FSU) 6-2, 6-4

No. 15 FSU Women Roll Past Samford 4-0, Move On To Second Round.

The Seminoles will face No. 19 Texas or No. 43 South Florida on Saturday at 4:00 p.m.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - In front of a rowdy crowd at Scott Speicher Tennis Center, the No. 15 Florida State (19-7, 8-5) women's tennis squad took care of the Samford Bulldogs (20-5, 12-0) 4-0 to move on to the second round of the NCAA Tennis Championships for the second year in a row. The Seminoles' match-up against No. 19 Texas or No. 43 USF will mark just the fourth time in school history the team has made it to the second round.

"The team did a great job of doing what they needed to do today," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "It was a bit of a slow start to singles, but they got over that and got in the mode. It was good to get through those first round jitters."

Sophomore Jessica Wente gave the Seminoles' their first win of the tournament with a 6-1, 6-2 defeat of Samford's Katie Weaver. Wente's win came just a few minutes after teammate Katie Rybakova secured her 18th win of the season over Taylor Morgan 6-3, 6-2 on the spotlight court.

"Today was great for Jess," said Hyde. "She had 19 wins for the season and her goal was to get to 20, so it was great for her to get that today."

Senior Tapiwa Marobela got the ball rolling for Florida State in singles early on with a powerful 6-1, 6-0 defeat of Samford's Rebecca Kirven.

Florida State already had a point on its side going into singles after dominating the doubles contest earlier in the day. It took a matter of seconds for Florida State to clinch the doubles point as the matches on the first and second courts finished within ten heartbeats of each other.

Rybakova and junior Ania Rynarzewska posted an 8-1 dismantling of Weaver and Anna Jackson on court one. Moments later, senior Carolin Walter and freshman Federica Suess took care of Morgan and Lindsey Mallory 8-4 on court two.

Macfarlane and Wente were up 4-3 on court three at the time the other two matches ended, giving FSU the advantage heading into singles.

The Seminoles will be back in action at home again tomorrow at 4:00 p.m. against the winner of this afternoon's match up between No. 19 Texas and No. 43 South Florida. Tomorrow's winner will advance to the round of 16 in Tulsa, Okla. starting next Friday, May 16.

"We're going to be ready to go," said Hyde. "This team has been on a mission all year long, we still have a lot left to prove. We're going to take full advantage of being on our home court. We had a great crowd today and we're hoping we'll be able to get an even bigger crowd tomorrow. But we're just going to take it one moment at a time out there and get to where we want to go."

In 11 appearances at the NCAA Tournament, Florida State has never made it past the second round.

Doubles
No. 1: Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) d. Anna Jackson/Katie Weaver (SU) 8-1
No. 2: Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) d. Lindsey Mallory/Taylor Morgan (SU) 8-4
No. 3: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) vs. Rebecca Kirven/Andrei Meiring (SU) dnf
Singles
No. 1: #27 Katie Rybakova (FSU) d. Taylor Morgan (SU) 6-3, 6-2
No. 2: #75 Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) vs. Andrei Meiring (SU) 6-2, 4-1 dnf
No. 3: #89 Carolin Walter (FSU) vs. Anna Jackson (SU) 6-4, 3-1 dnf
No. 4: Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Katie Weaver (SU) 6-1, 6-2
No. 5: Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Rebecca Kirven (SU) 6-1, 6-0
No. 6: Federica Suess (FSU) vs. Lindsey Mallory (SU) 6-7(), 0-1 dnf

No. 15 Florida State Falls In Final Match To No. 19 Texas 5-2.

The Seminoles showed the home crowd their best effort, but came up just short of a trip to the final 16.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - The No. 15 Florida State women's tennis team took their final curtain call beneath the lights of the Scott Speicher Tennis Center in an upsetting 5-2 loss to No. 19 Texas. Although the end result wasn't what the Seminoles wanted, the team still gave the home crowd something to be proud of in their last match of what's been a historical season.

Florida State's dreams of making a program-first trip to the NCAA Championship's third round came down to the final two matches. After a grueling five hours of tennis, the ebb and flow of both teams boiled down to the heart of their line-ups.

On court three, FSU's Carolin Walter and Stephanie Davison of UT were in a third-set tie-breaker at the same time Florida State's Jessica Wente and Texas' Caroline Larsson were battling out the last few games of their third set.

The end result on both courts was not what Florida State would have hoped for. Walter came up short in the tie-breaker, losing the match 5-7, 6-4, 7-6(5) moments after Wente gave up the final point in her third set to fall 6-2, 4-6, 6-2.

"They did a good job of putting themselves back in the matches after getting behind in a number of first sets," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "Once again, they just showed a ton of heart and competed unbelievably well. We had every opportunity today to be successful, we just did not execute at the times we needed to. When it came to playing the big points well, we just didn't do a good job of it when it mattered most."

Prior to the last matches, Texas had a leg up on Florida State 3-2 after freshman Katie Rybakova fell on court one against the Longhorns' Vanja Corovic. Rybakova rallied back from a 2-6 upset in her first set to force a tie-break point in the second, then dug in and rebounded from a 1-3 deficit to win the tie-breaker 8-6 and force a third set. But the long day caught up to the hardened rookie and she couldn't hold on, dropping the third set 2-6.

Sophomore Lauren Macfarlane tied the match earlier with a roaring comeback. After dropping her first set 3-6, the Utah-native never fell behind again as she stormed back to win 6-4, 6-1 in her last two sets.

Senior Tapiwa Marobela pulled out a tight first set 7-5 and used the momentum to push her past Texas' Maggie Mello 6-3 for the Seminoles' first singles victory of the match.

Florida State was behind going into singles after losing the doubles point to start the match. Junior Ania Rynarzewksa and Rybakova fell 8-3 to Texas' Corovic and Marija Milic, leaving the last remaining matches engaged in a give-and-take battle under the hot afternoon sun.

Macfarlane and Wente went up 4-1 before letting the Longhorns in the door and eventually tie the match at four and again at five. But the Seminoles' sophomore sensations stayed strong and came out victorious 8-5.

With that, the doubles point came down to court two where Walter and Suess put their 14-4 record on the line against Stephanie Davison and Caroline Larsson. The duos fought tooth-and-nail through the first eight points and wound up going to a tie-break. Florida State went up 3-0 before the Longhorns retaliated, taking the decision 7-4 and the doubles point along with it.

"The doubles point was pretty crucial--it always is--to have the 1-0 lead heading out for singles is always a mental edge," said Hyde. "Especially when you had the doubles point right in your hands. But I'm proud of them, they fought hard--they left it all out there."

Florida State ended a season that to this point has modified the history books from top to bottom. During the course of the season, the Seminoles set the school's highest ranking to date (#12), made it to the third round of the ACC tournament for just the second time in program history and placed two competitors (Walter and Suess) at number three and four on the all-time dual match win percentage list.

"The program is definitely going in the right direction," said Hyde. "We made a few more leaps and bounds ahead of where we were this time last year. As long as you're getting better and the culture of the team is getting bought into by the players then you know these moments are going to come around again. But next time we're in this situation I think we'll capitalize on them a little better than we did today."

While the Seminoles may leave the Speicher Center with heavy hearts, the final match of the season can't erase the footsteps left by this team on the Florida State women's tennis program.

"For the seniors, they both have built the foundation of the program and what it's going to be in my coaching era," said Hyde. "We couldn't have gotten here without them and without their contributions, work and loyalty. They will always have their footprints on making history at Florida State and being a part of--to this point--the best program in the history of Florida State women's tennis. No one can ever take that from them and that's a lot to be proud of."

Doubles
No. 1: #23 Vanja Corovic/Marija Milic (UTx) d. Katie Rybakova/Ania Rynarzewska (FSU) 8-3
No. 2: Stephanie Davison/Caroline Larsson (UTx) d. Federica Suess/Carolin Walter (FSU) 9-8(4)
No. 3: Lauren Macfarlane/Jessica Wente (FSU) d. Maggie Mello/Courtney Zauft (UTx) 8-5
Singles
No. 1: #63 Vanja Corovic (UTx) d. #27 Katie Rybakova (FSU) 6-2, 6-7(6), 6-2
No. 2: #75 Lauren Macfarlane (FSU) d. Courtney Zauft (UTx) 3-6, 6-4, 6-1
No. 3: Stephanie Davison (UTx) d. #89 Carolin Walter (FSU) 5-7, 6-4, 7-6(5)
No. 4: Caroline Larsson (UTx) d. Jessica Wente (FSU) 6-2, 4-6, 6-2
No. 5: Tapiwa Marobela (FSU) d. Maggie Mello (UTx) 7-5, 6-3
No. 6: Sarah Lancaster (UTx) d. Federica Suess (FSU) 6-2, 6-4

Freshman Rybakova Falls In First Round of NCAA Singles Tournament.

The Seminole rookie fought all the way to a third-set tiebreaker but could not pull out the win.

May 21, 2008

TULSA, OK - Freshman Katie Rybakova did not get the appropriate ending to what's been a fairytale season, but the rookie from Coral Springs, Fla., put up a tough fight before succumbing to USC's Gabriela Niculescu 6-4, 4-6, 7-6(10-8)in the first round of the NCAA Singles Championship.

"It was a heartbreaking loss for Katie today no question," said head coach Jennifer Hyde. "I'm really proud of her. Anytime a freshman goes into a championship environment there might be some jitterbugs, but she did a great job calming herself through the duration of the match. She took her time and didn't allow things to get away from her mentally or emotionally."

Rybakova fell behind in the first set, eventually falling 4-6. But the Russian-native rallied back in the second set to post a 6-4 win and force a third set. From there, the two competitors engaged in a brutal give-and-take battle. Rybakova went up 6-5 with the chance to serve for the win, but Niculescu came back and forced the match to move into a tiebreak.

Florida State's freshman phenom came on strong to start the tiebreak, going up 6-3 at one point with a chance to win the match. But Niculescu wasn't finished, battling back to even. Rybakova went up again 7-6, but could not seal the deal. Niculescu then climbed on top with an 8-7 lead, but Rybakova fired back to tie it at eight.

Unfortunately, it would be the last point of the freshman's brilliant season as Niculescu punched two more points in for the victory.

"She was down 2-4 in the third and she found a way to get up," said Hyde. "I have to give credit to Gabriela, when she went down 3-6 in the breaker she just stepped it up. It wasn't like Katie gave up the win, her opponent came back and took. I think experience may have been the difference at that point in the match."

Rybakova's first season at Florida State comes to a close with an impressive 28-12 overall record as well as a 18-7 dual match record. She was the only rookie to see playing time at court one where she pulverized a pair of top 15 opponents during the regular season.

"Katie did well," said Hyde. "She had a game plan and she stuck to it. She played a fantastic match and she put herself in a position to win at the NCAA Tournament--no matter who you are, that's a great feat. Her opponent really just stepped it up when it mattered the most. It was a great experience for her and it was not the last time she's going to be at this tournament. Once we get past this loss we can continue to look forward to the future."

05/21/2008
Singles
#49 Gabriela Niculescu (USC) d. #27 Katie Rybakova (FSU) 6-4, 4-6, 7-6(8)