Williamsburg, KY - The 14th-ranked Patriots women's tennis team made it four straight wins Sunday afternoon with them moving to 2-0 in conference play as they defeated (RV) Cumberland Phoenix 6-1 at the UC Tennis Court.
UC got the win in doubles play to help set the tone for the rest of the match. Tomomi Nagao and Mikaela Fros gave Cumberlands an edge to start things out at #1 doubles, winning 6-2. The Phoenix responded with a win of their own at the #3 spot as Alexandra Leisibach and Lara Zugasti defeated Johanna Beckmann and Satsuki Mitani to even things up. #2 doubles became the deciding contest for the first point with the Patriots winning out in a tight 7-5 victory for Tessa Gray and Meiri Okuwaki.
Nagao started off singles play the same way she did doubles: with a win. Tomomi made quick work of her Cumberland counterpart, Elina Sungatullina, as UC's #1 got the flawless victory, winning 6-0, 6-0.
Okuwaki made it a 3-0 game in favor of the Patriots next at the #2 spot in singles play. She had a bit of a tougher match on her hands compared to Nagao as Meiri needed three sets to win. Okuwaki won the first set 6-4 before dropping the second by a count of 6-3 to set up a decisive third canto. Meiri wasn't shaken by her loss as she battled her way to a 6-3 win to help move UC closer to the victory. Johnna Beckmann sealed the win for Cumberlands in the #4 spot after battling during her first set. Beckmann was matched up Zugasti and had a fight during the first stanza in which Beckmann won 7-5. The second was a much easier affair for Johanna with her winning 6-1 to clinch the win.
Catherine Rae saw her match come to a conclusion next with her dropping her contest as UC's #3. Rae saw Maria Arbelaez as her opponent and did all she could to take the win, but to no avail. Catherine won the first set 7-6 before dropping the second by the same score. She and Arbelaez went to a tie breaker with Rae on the wrong end of the score card in that one, falling 11-9.
Hana Shimeno and Fan Shiau closed out the day for UC with them each winning in dominant fashion. Shimeno played as the #5 and was able to take the first set without giving up a point before winning 6-1 to end the contest. Shiau's bout went similarly with her winning 6-1, 6-0 to close the book on this one.
Cumberlands moves to 11-3 on the season with a 2-0 record in conference play. They'll put that pristine conference record, along with their current four-match win streak, on the line on Tuesday when they travel to Columbia, KY to take on #10 Lindsey Wilson.
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