The University of Mississippi Athletics
No. 24 Rebels Top Texas Tech 4-2
2/6/2015 | Women's Tennis
LUBBOCK, Texas - In their second meeting in less than a year, the No. 24 ranked Ole Miss women's tennis team topped No. 29 Texas Tech 4-2 here Friday night at the McLeod Tennis Center to improve to 5-1. The Rebels will conclude their stay in Lubbock with a match against Rice Saturday at Noon.
The win marked the first one in Lubbock for the Rebels, who now improve to 4-1 all-time against the Lady Raiders (3-2).
"This a very tough place to play and Texas Tech has a very good team," head coach Mark Beyers said. "To come away with a victory, I am very proud of the girls for battling the crowd and a good team and coming up with four points. Going into singles with a 1-0 lead and winning four first sets was huge."
After the Ole Miss duo of Mai El Kamash and Arianne Hartono won 6-3 at No. 3, Texas Tech claimed the No. 2 spot 6-2, sending it to court one to decide the point. The senior duo of Iris Verboven and Erin Stephens were locked in a tight battle with Kenna Kilgo and Sarah Dvorak. After holding serve for 6-5, the Rebel duo held triple match point at 0-40, before the Lady Raiders tied it up 40-40. Stephens and Verboven won the deciding point to clinch the match 7-5 and the 1-0 lead for the Rebels.
Texas Tech tied the match when 89th-ranked Sarah Dvorak upset No. 33 Hartono 6-3, 6-2 at No. 2 singles.
The Rebels regained the lead when senior Julia Jones finished off Kilgo 6-3, 6-3 at No. 1 singles. Jones improved to 16-3 overall, 6-0 at No. 1 singles. She has now won six in a row.
The Lady Raiders evened the match once again when Sabrina Federici defeated Verboven 6-3, 6-1 at No. 5 singles.
Moments apart, El Kamash and Stephens wrapped up their matches to seal the 4-2 victory. El Kamash knocked off No. 35 ranked Lynn Kiro 6-3, 6-3 at No. 3 singles for her 15th win of the year. After winning her first set 6-2 against Katelyn Jackson, Stephens trailed 4-0 in the second set before winning six straight to clinch the victory.
"Impressive for Erin to battle back to get the second set and close out the match for us," Beyers said. "That's what we have to do to win these types of matches. Hopefully we'll be able to draw on this situation when we are faced with it again later on in the season."
For more information on Ole Miss Women's Tennis, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissWTennis, on Facebook at OleMissWTennis and on Instagram at OleMissWTennis.
#24 Ole Miss 4, #29 Texas Tech 2
Doubles
1. Verboven/Stephens (OM) def. Kilgo/Dvorak (TT) 7-5
2. Kiro/Federici (TT) def. #56 Jones/Suk (OM) 6-3
3. #45 Hartono/El Kamash (OM) def. Talaba/Boscher (TT) 6-2
Order of Finish: 3, 2, 1
Singles
1. #20 Julia Jones (OM) def. Kenna Kilgo (TT) 6-3, 6-3
2. #89 Sarah Dvorak (TT) def. #33 Arianna Hartono (OM) 6-3, 6-2
3. Mai El Kamash (OM) def. #35 Lynn Kiro (TT) 6-3, 6-3
4. Natalie Suk (OM) vs. Gabriela Talaba (TT) 7-5, 2-4, sus.
5. Sabrina Federici (TT) def. Iris Verboven (OM) 6-3, 6-1
6. Erin Stephens (OM) def. Katelyn Jackson (TT) 6-2, 6-4
Order of Finish: 2, 1, 5, 3, 6
Players Mentioned
