The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
Alabama
Women's Tennis Loses Another Heartbreaker At Alabama
3/10/2006 | Women's Tennis
March 10, 2006
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The Ole Miss women's tennis team led Alabama 3-1, but could not grab the final point, as the Crimson Tide rallied for a 4-3 win here Friday evening. The Lady Rebels (6-3, 0-3) will try to win their first conference match Sunday when they travel to Auburn for a 1 p.m. match.
This marked the second match in a row for the Lady Rebels to lose 4-3 and also the fifth 4-3 setback since last year.
With the match all square at 3-3, it came down to No. 3 singles with Ilona Somers and Alabama's Mari Muller. Somers lost the first set 6-2, but rallied to take the second 6-1. She served for the match at 5-4, but Muller broke and held serve to go up 6-5. Somers answered to force the tiebreaker, which Muller won 7-5 to clinch the win for Alabama (4-5, 2-1).
Ole Miss got on the board first, taking the doubles point with a key win at the No. 1 position. Virginia Tomatis and Somers downed the No. 14 team in the nation, Robin Stephenson and Ashley Bentley, 8-3 to set up the clinching win at No. 2 doubles. Nika Koukhartchouk and Kseniia Tokarieva improved to 8-1 at No. 2 doubles with their 8-5 win over Muller and Melissa Day.
Alabama evened the match when Stephenson defeated Tomatis 6-1, 6-1 at the top spot in singles. Stephenson is now 7-2 at No.1 singles.
Tokarieva won yet again, downing UA's Andrea Brenes 6-2, 6-1 at No. 4 singles to give the Lady Rebels a 2-1 lead. She won her ninth match in a row and improved to 17-1 in dual matches in singles and doubles.
Sophomore Mimi Renaudin won a three-set match against Sofia Ayala at No. 6 singles to increase the lead to 3-1. Renaudin claimed the first set 6-2, but Ayala came back to take the second 6-2. Renaudin got an early break in the third set and went on to win 6-2.
The Crimson Tide squared the match with wins at Nos. 5 and 2 singles. Shelley Godwin defeated Preethi Subramanian 6-3, 6-2 on court five and then Bentley handed Koukhartchouk a 7-6, 6-2 loss on court two to set up the clinching match.
DOUBLES
#1 Tomatis/Somers (OM) def. Stephenson/Bentley (UA) 8-3
#2 Koukhartchouk/Tokarieva (OM) def. Muller/Day (UA) 8-5
#3 McElveen/Brenes (UA) def. Subramanian/Renaudin (OM) 8-3
SINGLES
#1 Robin Stephenson (UA) def. Virginia Tomatis (OM) 6-1, 6-1
#2 Ashley Bentley (UA) def. Nika Koukhartchouk (OM) 7-6, 6-2
#3 Mari Muller (UA) def. Ilona Somers (OM) 6-2, 1-6, 7-6(5)
#4 Ksneiia Tokarieva (OM) def. Andrea Brenes (UA) 6-2, 6-1
#5 Shelley Godwin (UA) def. Preethi Subramanian (OM) 6-3, 6-2
#6 Mimi Renaudin (OM) def. Sofia Ayala (UA) 6-2, 2-6, 6-2
