Saturday, April 2
Martin, Tenn.
1 p.m.
UT Martin
1
vs
6
Southeast Missouri
ESPINAL EARNS TWO SEPARATE VICTORIES AS SKYHAWK TENNIS BATTLES SOUTHEAST MISSOURI
4/2/2022 7:31:00 PM | Tennis
MARTIN, Tenn. – True freshman Lia Espinal – alongside doubles mate Jillian Niedzialowski and then once more in a solo setting – snatched two wins for the University of Tennessee at Martin tennis program on Saturday afternoon, hosting the reigning Ohio Valley Conference regular season champion Southeast Missouri and coming away with a 6-1 defeat once all was said and done.
Getting the better of Myroslava Zelenchuk and Vivian Lai in a one-sided 6-1 decision to begin the OVC contest on the right foot for the Skyhawks, Espinal and Niedzialowski seized their second consecutive tag-team W (following last weekend's neutral court triumph over Eastern Illinois) and fifth as a group in 2022. Unfortunately for the navy and orange, the Redhawks quickly stormed back to take the next two doubles sets as they continued their path towards an undefeated start to league play.
Playing at the No. 4 slot, Espinal kept her individual momentum chugging with an impressive win over Zelenchuk, taking the one-on-one duel 6-4 and 7-5, the ninth of the semester for the collegiate rookie and second straight (again following the W over EIU seven days back).
Gallery: (4-2-2022) Tennis vs. Southeast Missouri
Elsewhere on the singles stage, both Amelia Campbell and Mizuki Sakurai came ever so close to sending their respective series into a third set with a pair of 7-6 decisions in the second rally that slid in the other direction, ultimately falling just shy of achieving that extension.
Another near-victory in singles competition came in the No. 5 slot from reigning OVC Player of the Week (x2) Aziza Aubin, who narrowly fell during a three-set thriller against Lai to put an end to the junior's remarkable eight-match winning streak. Margins of 6-4 and 7-5 in the final two sets allowed the Redhawks to take the tightly-contested affair whose final score of 6-1 doesn't reflect the overall closeness of the conference battle.
Nearing the halfway point of the 2022 league schedule, UTM heads back to the road next Friday for an in-state trip to Nashville to face the Belmont Bruins. Despite a 5-2 setback on Saturday at the hands of Austin Peay, the Bruins will ride into next weekend with a 9-6 resume and a pair of OVC wins along with it over Tennessee State and Murray State.
First serve in the Volunteer State's capitol will occur at 1:00 p.m.
Getting the better of Myroslava Zelenchuk and Vivian Lai in a one-sided 6-1 decision to begin the OVC contest on the right foot for the Skyhawks, Espinal and Niedzialowski seized their second consecutive tag-team W (following last weekend's neutral court triumph over Eastern Illinois) and fifth as a group in 2022. Unfortunately for the navy and orange, the Redhawks quickly stormed back to take the next two doubles sets as they continued their path towards an undefeated start to league play.
Playing at the No. 4 slot, Espinal kept her individual momentum chugging with an impressive win over Zelenchuk, taking the one-on-one duel 6-4 and 7-5, the ninth of the semester for the collegiate rookie and second straight (again following the W over EIU seven days back).
Elsewhere on the singles stage, both Amelia Campbell and Mizuki Sakurai came ever so close to sending their respective series into a third set with a pair of 7-6 decisions in the second rally that slid in the other direction, ultimately falling just shy of achieving that extension.
Another near-victory in singles competition came in the No. 5 slot from reigning OVC Player of the Week (x2) Aziza Aubin, who narrowly fell during a three-set thriller against Lai to put an end to the junior's remarkable eight-match winning streak. Margins of 6-4 and 7-5 in the final two sets allowed the Redhawks to take the tightly-contested affair whose final score of 6-1 doesn't reflect the overall closeness of the conference battle.
Nearing the halfway point of the 2022 league schedule, UTM heads back to the road next Friday for an in-state trip to Nashville to face the Belmont Bruins. Despite a 5-2 setback on Saturday at the hands of Austin Peay, the Bruins will ride into next weekend with a 9-6 resume and a pair of OVC wins along with it over Tennessee State and Murray State.
First serve in the Volunteer State's capitol will occur at 1:00 p.m.
Players Mentioned
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