KENNESAW, Ga. —
Maria Ivankovic and
Sofia Madrid delivered must-have wins in the final two matches of singles play as Kennesaw State women's tennis took its first Conference USA win of the season in a 4-3 defeat of Middle Tennessee on Friday afternoon.
"Well, this certainly was not our cleanest match, but it's very rarely ever about who feels the best out there," said KSU director of tennis
Matt Emery. "It's about who fights harder and wants it more. I was very proud of how we stayed resilient today, especially at the end of the match when it's all about who executed under pressure."
The Blue Raiders jumped out to an early lead with the doubles point after a 7-6 (7-3) win for Lena Peyer and Zenn Lim over
Che Nel and
Izabelle Persson on court three. Madrid and
Ema Baraniakova took court one for KSU in a 6-0 win. MTSU controlled court two 6-1.
Baraniakova continued to roll in singles play with a 43-minute 6-1, 6-3 defeat of Zora Koenig on one.
After court five went the Blue Raiders' way,
Laura Nadaska pushed through a second-set tiebreak to win 6-3, 7-6 (9-7) on four over Sara Conde.
MTSU took court six and looked positioned to win the day until Madrid and Ivankovic came up big late for KSU.
Madrid finished her No. 2 singles match strong with a 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 win over Peyer. The senior from Neuquen, Argentina, has now won eight consecutive singles matches.
Ivankovic fell 6-7 (4-7) in her first set on three but bounced back to take the match with set scores of 6-4 and 6-2 against Sthefany Lima.
"Shoutout to Maria for stepping up and clinching that match," Emery said. "She was a ferocious competitor out there at the end."
Up Next
The Owls continue conference play in their final road matches of the regular season as they face New Mexico State and Sam Houston in Huntsville, Texas, on April 3-4.
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