Irvin Blanks Kaufman to Advance to Second Round of Qualifying

Marissa Irvin of Santa Monica and San Diego’s Biffy Kaufman have known each other since they were nine or ten years old.

While they are friends off the court, on the court Irvin was all business in Saturday’s first-round Acura Classic qualifying match at the La Costa Resort and Spa.

Irvin, seeded sixth in qualifying, quickly dispatched Kaufman, 6-0, 6-0, in 45 minutes on Stadium Court.

Kaufman had her chances to get on the scoreboard, but was unable to break through. She wasted four break point opportunities.

“I wanted to go out and play as well as I could,” Irvin said. “It’s hard playing someone who’s a friend of yours and you grew up playing with.”

Irvin hopes to keep her qualifying streak going as she has qualified for the Acura Classic main draw the last two years.

“I’ve played well since the French and at Wimbledon. I feel like this summer has been a good summer for me,” Irvin said. “I’m looking forward my match tomorrow.”

When asked about playing on Stadium Court, Irvin said, “It’s about as perfect as it can get for me. As far as I’m concerned it’s perfect. It’s always been a nice tournament for me.”

• Irvin will face Hana Sromova of the Czech Republic in the second round of qualifying.
• Irvin is playing in the Acura Classic for the fifth time in her career.
• Irvin lost to Daniela Hantuchova in the first round of last year’s Acura Classic after qualifying for the main draw.
• Irvin is ranked 98 in the world.
• Irvin was the NCAA singles runner-up in 1999 while playing for Stanford.
• Kaufman is ranked 724 in the world.
• Kaufman earned a wildcard into the qualifying draw for winning the Acura Classic Opportunity Tournament in San Diego.
• Kaufman played four years of collegiate tennis for Yale University.

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