2016 NCAA Division I Women’s Championship: Stanford Cardinal wins 18th title after a thriller match with Oklahoma State

When the draw for 2016 NCAA Women’s National Championship came out, few people could expect to see Stanford Cardinal and Oklahoma State Cowgirls in the final, being placed as a 12th and 15th seeds. Still, both teams showed amazing fighting spirit and determination to surpass all the challenges and to reach the title match at Michael D. Case Tennis Center in Tulsa. In the end, Stanford went all the way, beating Texas A&M CC, Texas A&M, Florida (2), Michigan (10), Vanderbilt (6) and finally Oklahoma State (12) to win the 18th national title and the first since 2013. In 4 of these matches, the Cardinal were pushed to distance, prevailing in the final 7th match, and they were also on a verge of defeat in the final as well, trailing 3-1. The Cowgirls, playing in their first NCAA final (18 straight wins before this final), couldn’t finish the match even with that advantage, as that 4th point which they wanted so much just kept fleeing from them. Playing without the burden of favorites suits Stanford well, as they won the 14 out of last 16 NCAA matches against better-ranked rivals!

Oklahoma State had a better opener, taking the doubles point with 2 commanding wins. Katarina Adamovic/Vladica Babic were amazing once again, toppling Krista Hardebeck/Caroline Lampl 6-1 on court 3 before Maria Alvarez/Kelsey Laurente added the second win with a 6-3 triumph over Taylor Davidson/Caroline Doyle on the main court. This outcome was rather expected by everyone, knowing how good the Cowgirls are in the doubles, and Stanford head coach Lele Forood knew the real battle will start in singles. The teams have split the first set on 6 singles courts, which could guarantee a fearsome battle until the very end. Krista …

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