Tulsa
TCU (NCAA 1st Round)
Tulsa Women's Tennis Outlasts No. 26 TCU, 4-3
5/9/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
May 9, 2008
Waco, Texas - The 40th-ranked University of Tulsa women's tennis team upset No. 26 TCU in a grueling first round match of the NCAA Women's Tennis Championship on Friday afternoon at the Baylor Tennis Center. This will be Tulsa's second appearance in the second round, its first since 2000. The Golden Hurricane will be back in action tomorrow afternoon at 5 p.m. against either Baylor or Oral Roberts, with the winner advancing to the round of 16.
Head Dean Orford said of the match: "This was a very grueling match for us. It was a five-hour duel between two good teams. We battled hard in singles and came away with the win. It will be a quick turnaround for us, and we know we will face a quality team tomorrow afternoon."
In doubles action, TU fought after losing at the No. 3 position to win the next two matches and the doubles point. The Golden Hurricane fell behind after TCU's doubles pair of Maria Babanova and Nina Munch-Soegaard defeated sophomores Rebecca Row and Jie Zeng, 8-3. Tying the doubles competition was Tulsa's No. 2 duo of junior Thalia Diaz-Barriga and sophomore Marta Marcinkowska, who beat Katariina Tuohimaa and Idunn Hertzberg, 8-5. The Golden Hurricane's top team of freshman Alexandra Kichoutkin and junior Carla Zabaleta clinched the doubles point by upsetting the No. 18-ranked doubles pair of Anna Sydorska and Macall Harkins in tiebreak, 9-8 (7-5).
After winning the doubles point, Tulsa dropped the first three singles matches before rallying to victory. Tulsa's lone senior Agostina Santoro clinched the match at the No. 6 position by defeating Maria Babanova, 6-4, 4-6, 6-1.
No. 60 Munch-Soegaard defeated No. 98 Kichoutkin, 6-2, 7-5, on court one to even up the match. TCU picked up its first lead after Tuohimaa downed Zabaleta, 6-0, 7-6 (7-3) at No. 3. TCU stretched its lead to 3-1 after Harkins defeated Diaz-Barriga at No. 2 after dropping the first set, 4-6, 6-0, 6-3.
Marcinkowska made the score 3-2 after dispatching Hertzberg in three-sets at No. 5, 3-6, 7-6 (10-8), 6-3. Row tied the match by up at 3-3, defeating No. 118 Sydorska at No. 4 in another three-set match, 6-7 (5-7), 7-5, 7-5.
The Golden Hurricane's defeat of the No. 26 Horned Frogs was its best of the season, bettering its defeat of No. 50 Marshall in the Conference USA Champion final. TU has now won nine in a row, including two-straight against ranked opponents.
Tulsa will play again tomorrow at 5 p.m. against the winner of No. 5 Baylor and Oral Roberts.
#40 Tulsa 4, #26 TCU 3
Singles competition - Order of finish: Doubles (1,3,2,5,4,6)
1. #60 Nina Munch-Soegaard (TCU) def. #98 Alexandra Kichoutkin (TUL) 6-2, 7-5
2. Macall Harkins (TCU) def. Thalia Diaz-Barriga (TUL) 4-6, 6-0, 6-3
3. Katariina Tuohimaa (TCU) def. Carla Zabaleta (TUL) 6-0, 7-6 (7-3)
4. Rebecca Row (TUL) def. #118 Anna Sydorska (TCU) 6-7 (5-7), 7-5, 7-5
5. Marta Marcinkowska (TUL) def. Idunn Hertzberg (TCU) 3-6, 7-6 (10-8), 6-3
6. Agostina Santoro (TUL) def. Maria Babanova (TCU) 6-4, 4-6, 6-1
Doubles competition - Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1)
1. Alexandra Kichoutkin/Carla Zabaleta (TUL) def. #18 Anna Sydorska/Macall Harkins (TCU) 9-8 (7-5)
2. Thalia Diaz-Barriga/Marta Marcinkowska (TUL) def. Katariina Tuohimaa/Idunn Hertzberg (TCU) 8-5
3. Maria Babanova/Nina Munch-Soegaard (TCU) def. Rebecca Row/Jie Zeng (TUL) 8-3
Players Mentioned
