SKYHAWK QUEST FOR OVC TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIP COMES UP SHORT AGAINST UNDEFEATED AUSTIN PEAY

Sunday, April 28

Nashville, Tenn.

10 A.M.

UT Martin

Austin Peay

SKYHAWK QUEST FOR OVC TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIP COMES UP SHORT AGAINST UNDEFEATED AUSTIN PEAY

4/28/2019 4:45:00 PM | Tennis

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee at Martin's four-match winning streak came to an end today as the No. 6 seed Skyhawks fell to top-seeded Austin Peay in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament championship match.

UT Martin, who was the first No. 6 seed to ever reach the OVC Tournament finals, conclude the 2018-19 season with a 7-12 overall record.

Just as the Skyhawks' No. 1 doubles team of Asel Jumamukhambetova and Jemima Potter were on the verge of claiming a win (leading 5-3), the Governors clinched the first point of the match via wins at No. 2 and No. 3.

Austin Peay (22-0) would use that momentum to get off to a fast start in singles, winning matchups at No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4. Jumamukhambetova took the opening set (6-3) at No. 1 while Andrea Plantada was ahead by a 4-0 margin in her second set at No. 5 when the Governors tallied their fourth point of the match.

"I couldn't be more proud of our team – we did an excellent job to get where we are now," UT Martin head coach Dennis Taylor said. "If you had taken a video of our team maybe a month ago and then compared it to this afternoon, you would not think it was the same team. They've improved so much in a short length of time and they're just a tough bunch – they don't ever quit and they play until the very end. Austin Peay probably has the strongest team that I've ever seen in the OVC. Our girls played well but it was just a little too much for us today."

Today's result marks the end of the collegiate playing careers of UT Martin seniors Olha Burak, Jumamukhambetova, Plantada and Potter. Those four combined for 365 wins, a .641 winning percentage in league play and eight OVC Commissioner's Honor Roll mentions.

"Every day in practice, these four seniors set the tone for our season," Taylor said. "They tried to get the underclassmen to realize what they were about to come up against. Over the last few weeks, they put everything aside and concentrated on what it took to get us to this final match. They've done a tremendous job and we will miss them."

A two-time All-OVC honoree, Jumamukhambetova wraps up her transcendent Skyhawk career ranking eighth in program history with 69 singles wins. Potter also leaves a mark in the school's record book, as her 75 doubles victories rank as the sixth-highest total at UT Martin.