Razorbacks Beat Mustangs, Advance to Championship
STILLWATER, Okla. – The Arkansas women’s tennis team (1-0) won its first match of the season after a 4-3 win against SMU (1-2) Saturday afternoon at Greenwood Tennis Center as part of the ITA Kickoff Weekend. The Razorbacks move on to the championship and will face No. 4 Oklahoma State tomorrow at 2 p.m.
“First, I want to credit SMU and Coach Nevolo for the program they run over there,” head coach Tucker Clary said. “They bring a level of intensity and discipline that you have to match to be able to compete. We showed how we can handle adversity after losing that doubles point by taking over the facility with our energy and effort level. We have stressed all fall about what it was going to take to win a match like today and I couldn’t be more proud of the way we competed as a group.”
The Mustangs took the early advantage after a win on court three, as Drew Morris/Ariana Stavropoulus defeated Katarina Pavlechova/Jimena Gomez Alonso, 6-0. SMU continued their momentum on court two where Sophie Llewellyn/Ellie Pittman defeated Olga Bienzobas/Carolina Gomez Alonso 6-2, grabbing the doubles point. Court one did not get to finish play.
The Mustangs struck first in singles play, with Millie Skelton beating J. Gomez Alonso 6-2, 6-2. Arkansas got on the board soon after, with Bienzobas defeating Pittman on court two, 6-4, 7-5. SMU answered with a win on court four, with Llewellyn defeating Grace O’Donnell, 6-3, 7-6 (7), giving them a 3-1 lead in the match.
Shortly after falling behind, Koskel came back after dropping the first set, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3. No. 72 C. Gomez Alonso tied the match with a three-set victory over Morris, 6-1, 4-6, 6-3. The match came down to court five, where Pavlechova faced off with June Bjork. Pavlechova narrowly took the first-set tiebreak 7-6 (7) before winning the second set 7-5 to secure the comeback victory for Arkansas.
Recapping the win, Clary said, “One through six we put it all out there lead by our captains and finished by our freshmen playing in their first college match! We will enjoy this one and move right on to play the defending indoor champions tomorrow in what we hope will show us where we are at as a group. Go Hogs!
The Hogs will play No. 4 Oklahoma State tomorrow in the ITA Kickoff Weekend championship match at 2 p.m.
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