UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. ? Kansas University’s women’s tennis team dropped a 4-3 decision to Penn State on Friday.
The Jayhawks got off to a good start by winning the doubles point. The KU teams of Christina Skoda and Ashley Filberth and Luiza Loureiro and Elizabeth Avdeeva were victorious.
Skoda and Lauren Hommell won singles matches.
KU (1-5) will meet Yale here today.
Houston ? Kansas University’s women’s tennis team dropped just one singles match in a 6-1 rout of Houston on Thursday. Monica Sekulov, Cheryl Mallaiah, Courtney Steinbock, Christi Wagenaar and Emily Haylock claimed singles victories for the Jayhawks.
Freshman twins Courtney and Kristen Steinbock, Sekulov-Haylock and Cheryl Mallaiah and Lisa Mallaiah also claimed doubles victories.
KU will face Texas Tech on Saturday in Lubbock, Texas.
Monica Sekulov, KU, def. Karine Urbin, 6-1, 6-3.
Cheryl Mallaiah, KU, def. Jen Baccaroni, 6-4, 6-0.
Courtney Steinbock, KU, def. Sarah Flood, 6-2, 6-2.
Jo Keene, UH, def. Lisa Mallaiah, 2-6, 6-1, 6-1.
Christi Wagenaar, KU, def. Annie Rapp, 6-4, 6-3.
Emily Haylock, KU, won by default.
C. Steinbock-Kristen Steinbock, KU, def. Borwell-Rapp, 8-2.
Sekulov-Haylock, KU, def. Flood-Urbin, 8-4.
C. Mallaiah-L. Mallaiah, KU, won by default.
Kansas University’s women’s tennis team beat No. 46-rated Brigham Young, 4-3, on Friday night at Alvamar Racquet Club.
The victory was the Jayhawks’ first over a ranked team this season. KU fell to No. 5-ranked Texas, 4-3, last week.
“We knew we could beat a team at this level and everyone stepped up,” KU coach Kilmeny Waterman said. “They are believing in themselves right now and that’s counting for a lot.”
Senior Monica Sekulov led the way by outlasting the country’s No. 40-rated player Jodi Richardson 6-2, 0-6, 7-6 in No. 1 singles. KU’s Cheryl Mallaiah and Courtney Steinbock won straight set victories at Nos. 2 and 3 singles.
“I’ve known Jodi from Australia since we were juniors, but I’ve never played against her,” said Sekulov, a native of Hamersley, Australia. “I knew she was an aggressive player and I tried to get up on her early. I just tried to keep her running.”
Of her victory, Cheryl Mallaiah said: “I just kept fighting because I really wanted to get a win and another point for us.”
KU also won the doubles point, taking two of three matches.
The team of freshman twins Courtney and Kristen Steinbock topped BYU’s Jodi Richardson and Lu Oswald, 8-2.
“I know I hit some really good serves,” Courtney Steinbock said. “I’d been struggling with them in practice this past week, but it all just seemed to come together.”
BYU’s Dominique Reynolds and Elizavetea Khoudoiarova downed Kansas’ Sekulov and Lisa Mallaiah, 8-6. But KU’s No. 3 doubles team of Emily Haylock and Kim Lorenz dropped Brigham Young’s Lindsay Ferrell and Lindsy Porter by the same score.
“Our doubles teams are so good,” Sekulov said. “Hopefully, our doubles success will inspire more singles wins.”
“We’ve had a lot of success in doubles lately. Winning the doubles point is helping our momentum all the way through matches,” Waterman said.
The Jayhawks will face No. 11 Notre Dame at 11 a.m. Sunday at Alvamar.
“I think we’ll do really well against Notre Dame, since we did so well against Texas,” Cheryl Mallaiah said. “That match showed we definitely can compete with them we just need to confident and stay positive.”
Monica Sekulov, KU, def. Jodi Richardson, 6-2, 0-6, 7-6
Cheryl Mallaiah, KU, def. Dominique Reynolds 7-6, 6-1
Courtney Steinbock, KU, def. Lu Oswald, 7-5, 6-1
Lindsay Ferrell, BYU, def. Lisa Mallaiah, 7-5, 6-2
Elizaveta Khoudoiarova, BYU, def. Christi Wagenaar, 6-3, 2-6, 1-0
Elyse Jensen, BYU, def. Emily Haylock, 6-1, 3-6, 1-0 (6)
C.Steinbock-K.Steinbock, KU, def. Richardson-Oswald, 8-2
Reynolds-Khoudoiarova, BYU, def. L.Mallaiah-Sekulov, 8-6
Haylock-Lorenz, KU, def. Ferrell-Porter, 8-6.
