CLEVELAND, Ohio – With another strong performance from the top of the IUP lineup, the Crimson Hawks defeated Case Western Reserve 6-3 at the Cleveland Skating Club Sunday afternoon. Case Western Reserve is the 18th-ranked team in NCAA Division III.
 
The Crimson Hawks (3-0) picked up doubles wins at the top two spots, including a challenging 9-7 victory at No. 1 by Jarka Petercakova (Bratislava, Slovakia/Sport Gymnasium) and Luise von Agris (Castrop-Rauxel, Germany/Adalbet-Stifter-Gymnasium). The 2016 conference doubles championship team returned to action this weekend as Petercakova sat out last fall, and the duo picked up where they left off with a pair of victories over some of the best in the region from Division III.
 
Katya Minchenkova (Mytishchi, Russia/Secondary School No.12) and Nicole Beidacki (Porto Alegre, Brazil/Colegio Sao Judas Tadeu) also succeeded in just their second doubles match together, picking up an 8-4 win at the No. 2 spot.
 
In singles play, a pair of IUP wins went the extra mile as Petercakova won 7-6 (8-6), 6-1 at No. 1 and Beidacki picked up a 6-0, 7-6 (7-3) victory at No. 4.
 
The Crimson Hawks took four of the six singles victories, including a von Agris' 6-4, 6-4 win at No. 2 and a 6-4, 6-1 win at No. 6 by Mariana Valenzuela (Bogotá, Colombia/George Berkeley School).
 
IUP won 14 of the 18 points this weekend over a pair of ranked Division III teams, including 10 in singles play.
 
Up next
The Crimson Hawks continue with their Division III schedule next weekend in Monroeville with indoor matches against Denison and Carnegie Mellon Feb. 24-25.
 
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