STANFORD, Calif. – Janice Shin's 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 clincher powered No. 3 Stanford past No. 14 Kansas on Friday afternoon in the NCAA Super Regionals at Taube Family Tennis Stadium.
Defending NCAA champion Stanford (25-1, 10-0 Pac-12) stormed back after losing doubles in a highly competitive match that lasted nearly three and half hours.
The Cardinal felt immediate pressure from Kansas (21-5, 7-2 Big 12), which captured the doubles point in convincing fashion and looked nothing like a program making its first appearance in the NCAA round of 16 since 1998.
Stanford needed every ounce of its home-court advantage, a new format change in 2019 that rewards the tournament's top eight seeds with an extra Super Regional home match. The Cardinal has won 62 of its last 65 contests at Taube Family Tennis Stadium dating back to 2015.
The Cardinal next travels to the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Florida, where the final eight teams will compete for the NCAA title from May 17-19. Stanford will face Pepperdine next Friday in the quarterfinals.
Riding a 20-match winning streak as one of the hottest teams in the country, Stanford is predictably clicking at the right time of year once again. The Cardinal is 47-5 during the month of May since 2010, a stretch that has produced four NCAA titles (2010, 2013, 2016, 2018).
Kansas quickly locked up a 1-0 lead but there was no panic from Stanford. Since 2016, the Cardinal has now won 19 of its last 24 matches in which it loses the doubles point.
Seniors Caroline Lampl and Melissa Lord made the most of their final home matches at Taube, producing straight-set victories to put Stanford ahead 2-1. Lampl won her 23rd consecutive match with a 6-3, 6-3 victory at No. 3 before Lord closed out a 6-2, 7-5 triumph at No. 2.
The Jayhawks knotted it at 2-2 following a 7-5, 6-4 win from Maria Toran Ribes on court six.
Emily Arbuthnott then contributed a 5-7, 6-1, 6-4 victory at the No. 4 spot, moving Stanford closer at 3-2. Arbuthnott improved to 10-2 this season and 22-4 all-time in three-setters.
Kansas fought back to 3-3 as Anastasia Rychagova edged Michaela Gordon 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 in a battle of top-25 players at the No. 1 spot.
That left everything riding on Shin, who found some breathing room in the third set and closed out the 6-2 frame.
The most decorated program in college history and the winningest program on The Farm, Stanford has won 19 of the possible 37 NCAA championships. Stanford owns a 156-19 all-time record in the postseason since the NCAA Tournament went to its present format in 1982. The Cardinal has won 20 national titles overall in school history, also claiming the 1978 AIAW crown.
No. 3 Stanford 4, No. 14 Kansas 3
DOUBLES
1) No. 6 Khmelnitckaia/Koch (KAN) d. No. 19 Lampl/Kimberly Yee (STAN) 6-2
2) No. 29 Arbuthnott/Gordon (STAN) d. No. 64 Rychagova/Smagina (KAN) 6-2
3) Malkia Ngounoue/Toran Ribes (KAN) d. No. 57 Lord/Niluka Madurawe 6-3
Order of Finish: 3, 2, 1
SINGLES
1) No. 13 Anastasia Rychagova (KAN) d. No. 24 Michaela Gordon (STAN) 4-6, 6-4, 6-4
2) No. 29 Melissa Lord (STAN) d. No. 112 Janet Koch (KAN) 6-2, 7-5
3) No. 66 Caroline Lampl (STAN) d. Plobrung Plipuech (KAN) 6-3, 6-3
4) No. 44 Emily Arbuthnott (STAN) d. Sonia Smagina (KAN) 5-7, 6-1, 6-4
5) No. 108 Janice Shin (STAN) d. Nina Khmelnitckaia (KAN) 3-6, 6-4, 6-2
6) Maria Toran Ribes (KAN) d. Niluka Madurawe (STAN) 7-5, 6-4
Order of Finish: 3, 2, 6, 4, 1, 5