THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, October 13, 1995 TAG: 9510130684
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PATTI WALSH, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Short : 46 lines
Maury's Jennifer Warren is all too familiar with upsets.
Last year, following an undefeated regular season as the Commodores' No. 1 singles player, she lost a heartbreaker in the Eastern District tournament semifinals to Booker T. Washington's Donna Self. Then she and teammate Clea Caldwell, the top seeds in doubles, fell to Self and Sharon McClannan.
But Warren didn't leave this year's Eastern District finals at Old Dominion upset Thursday.
The Maury junior rolled to a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Granby's Nicole Bland. Warren then joined up with Caldwell for a 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, victory over the Comets Hurst and Elaine McCall for the doubles crown.
``I'm unbelievably happy,'' said Warren, who along with Bland, advances to Wednesday's region singles tournament at First Colonial. ``Nicole is a very good player and I never played her before. I didn't know what to expect.''
Neither did Bland, who topped the Bookers' No. 1 seed Bonnie Phelps and her teammate Carrie Hurst, 7-6, 6-2, to meet Warren in the final.
Tied 2-2 in the first set, Bland suffered an asthma attack and dropped the next four games. ``I was kind of nervous,'' she said. ``I wish I would've drank more water.''
In the second set, down 3-0, Bland rallied to break her hard-serving opponent. But Warren responded with a service break of her own in the next game.
In the doubles final, Warren and Caldwell won the first set, then McCall and Hurst broke the Commodores, held serve and rallied from a 15-40 deficit to square the match at a set apiece.
Warren and Caldwell then took advantage of several unforced errors by the Comets to win four straight games after being tied at two games each in the final set.
Both pairs advance to the doubles region tournament Wednesday at First Colonial.< ILLUSTRATION: D. KEVIN ELLIOTT/ The Virginian-Pilot
``I'm unbelievably happy,'' Jennifer Warren said. Last year she was
upset in the district singles and doubles.
by CNB