Ashley Bauer did not need a blimp ride to feel sky high after earning the decisive point in an OAC Tournament victory over Ohio Northern
When John Carroll defeated Ohio Northern during the 2010 regular season, Blue Streaks junior women's tennis player
Ashley Bauer was sky high.
Literally sky high.
Bauer missed the match to take a once-in-a-lifetime ride aboard the Goodyear Blimp with John Carroll president Fr. Robert Niehoff and other dignitaries back on March 27.
On Tuesday afternoon at Purvis Park in an Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament quarterfinal round match-up with those same Polar Bears, Bauer was once again sky high -- but this time in a more figurative manner. Her thrilling three-set win at #4 singles earned the decisive point in a 5-4 win over Ohio Northern.
Box Score
The victory advances the Blue Streaks to their first OAC semifinal round since 2006, which is also the last year John Carroll won the league title.
JCU fell behind after earning just one victory in three doubles matches. That point came courtesy of
Maria Ciccolini and Anna Navatsyk, who triumphed 8-6 over one of the top ranked teams in the league, Ashley Bonamer and Christie Gales, who were 15-3 prior to the start of the match.
In order to pull out the team win, JCU would need to win four of the six singles matches. Navatsyk at #2, Amy Marchlen at #3 and
Athena Pappis at #5 all won convincingly to put the Streaks one win away from clinching the victory.
But
Emily Gorndt fell off in the second set and lost at #6 singles, while Ciccolini lost two close sets to Bonamer at #1 singles.
That left Bauer center stage with Kristen Timperman, who was tied for the Ohio Northern lead for wins this season at 14. Bauer won the first set 6-4 but seemed to lose her grip on the match with a 6-1 setback in the second,
In a tense third set, Bauer broke early then held on to take a 6-4 victory and the match.
JCU, now 9-5 on the year, advances to play in the OAC Tournament semifinal round, where they will meet top-seeded Baldwin-Wallace -- a 5-0 winner over Marietta in its quarterfinal. The OAC Tournament semifinal and championship matches will take place in Mason, Ohio, at the Lindner Family Tennis Center.
