Roe Tames, Then Teams to Win Titles

Northern Colorado’s unseeded Nancy Roe took advantage of second-seeded teammate Sandra Elliot’s poor serving and won the NCAA Division II women’s singles championship, 6-4, 3-6, 6-0, Saturday at Cal State Northridge.

As teammates in the women’s doubles final, also played Saturday, Roe and Elliot successfully defended their title, defeating Julie Gillespie and Christine Ryan of Cal Poly Pomona, 6-2, 6-4. It was Elliot’s third consecutive doubles championship.

In the singles final, Elliot was efficient on only 44% of her first serves and double-faulted eight times. The left-handed senior usually approached the net behind her second serve and was passed consistently by Roe, who played at the base line throughout.

“It was real tough to play against her because we’re pretty good friends,” said Roe, a sophomore. “But it helped me today. If I hadn’t played her before I probably wouldn’t have been able to beat her.”

Elliot had difficulty even when she put her first serve in play, winning only 48% of those points.

It was Roe’s second win in as many meetings against Elliot, who finished the season with a 28-3 record. Elliot also lost in the singles final as a freshman.

Roe earned her berth in the finals by defeating unseeded Missy Conn of Northridge in a semifinal match Friday. Elliot gained entrance with a win over the No. 3 seed, Edna Olivarez of Cal State Los Angeles.

Pairings will be announced today for the Division II men’s team championships, which will be held Monday through Wednesday at CSUN. Matches begin daily at 9 a.m.

Among the eight teams competing are Chapman College, the defending champion, and Hampton Institute of Virginia, last year’s runner-up.

The other six teams are UC Davis, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Rollins College of Florida, Stephen F. Austin of Texas, University of Tennessee Martin, and Valdosta State of Georgia.

The individual men’s singles and doubles championships will be played at Northridge from Thursday through next Monday.