SMU women’s tennis drops matches to Texas Tech, UNLV

by PegNews wire

Texas Tech 5, SMU 2

The No. 60 SMU women's tennis team saw strong singles performances from Kseniia Tokarieva and Kristen Reid, but could not hold off the onslaught from No. 73 Texas Tech, as the Mustangs fell, 5-2, Friday afternoon.

In doubles, the 38th-ranked pair of Tokarieva and Nicole Briceno picked up a quality win at No. 2, dominating Kelsy Garland and Brenna Jackson, 8-3. Natalia Bubien and Pavi Francis fell to Janet Durham and Samantha van der Drift in a tough match, 8-6.

Tokarieva had a strong outing at No. 3 singles, picking up a straight-sets win over Simone Templeton, 6-3, 6-3. Reid dominated her match at No. 5, taking down Kerryn Potgieter in a straight-sets victory of her own, 6-2, 6-1.

No. 73 Bubien fell in the only match of the day to go three sets. Bubien won the first, 6-3, but dropped the next two, 6-2, 6-3. Francis nearly eked out a win over Garland, but instead fell, 7-6 (5), 6-4. At No. 4, Briceno was defeated by Durham in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3.

"We played well at No. 2 doubles and both Kristen [Reid] and Kseniia [Tokarieva] turned in dominating performances in singles," said head coach Lauren Longbotham-Meisner. "Unfortunately, that's the end of the good news. Texas Tech has as much heart and determination as any team in women's tennis and I commend them for their preparedness for this match. They take nothing for granted and play every point as hungrily as they can. Today we learned a difficult and humbling lesson and we will not make this same mistake again."

UNLV 4, SMU 3

The No. 62 SMU women's won the doubles point and two singles matches, but was unable to overturn No. 33 UNLV Sunday. With the loss, the Mustangs slip to 8-5 on the season, while the Lady Rebels improve to 8-3.

SMU battled in doubles, winning a close match at No. 1. Natalia Bubien paired with Pavi Francis to defeat Elena Gantcheva and Kristina Nedeltcheva, 8-6. At No. 2, the nation's 38th-ranked pair of Kseniia Tokarieva and Nicole Briceno coasted to an 8-4 win over Alisa Razina and Anna Maskaljun. With the two wins, SMU took the doubles point to start the match with a 1-0 lead.

In singles, the Mustangs got off to a rough start, with Tokarieva defaulting at No. 3. Tokarieva was ahead in the match, winning the first set 6-1 and was dominating the second, 3-1, but was forced to retire, giving Nikol Dimitrova the win. Natalia Bubien, ranked No. 73 in the country, dropped her match at No. 1, losing to 23rd-ranked Gantcheva, 6-2, 6-2.

But Kristen Reid got the Mustangs back on track, taking a big win at No. 5. Reid battled through the first set, but eked out a win over Adrienn Hidvegi, 7-6. Reid dominated the second set, though, defeating Hidvegi,6-1. Francis kept it rolling, notching a come-from-behind victory at No. 2, evening the score at three all. Francis dropped the first set to Nedeltcheva, 6-3, but rallied to take the second and third sets, 6-1, 6-1.

In the decisive match, Briceno fought through a very closely contested match, but fell in three sets to Maskaljun at No. 4. Briceno dropped the first set, 7-5, but came back to win the second, 6-4. Maskaljun regrouped and pulled out the win in the final set, 6-3.

"We came out with a lot of intensity today and played our best doubles of the season," said head coach Lauren Longbotham-Meisner. "Kristen came up big for the second match in a row and Pavi overcame a slow start and played solid tennis for the last two sets. We caught an unlucky break with Kseniia, who was cruising to an easy victory when she was forced to retire, but that's tennis, and that's life. I'm very proud of our girls, who all gave a championship-caliber effort today, even if it is not reflected in the final score."

The Mustangs will be off for almost two weeks, resuming play on March 14, when they host Louisville at 4pm, and March 16 when they host Conference USA rival Tulsa at 1pm.

Source: SMU