ARLINGTON, Texas – TCU’s No. 19-ranked women’s tennis team picked up a 4-2 win Wednesday afternoon over UT Arlington at the Mavericks’ UTA Tennis Center.
It marked TCU’s fifth-straight win and improved the Horned Frogs to 8-1 on the year. UTA slipped to 1-5 with the loss. TCU has won all 16 meetings in the all-time series with its nearby rival.
“Without Millie and Olivia in the lineup, we knew it was going to make the doubles tough,” TCU coach Dave Borelli said. “I wanted to rest Olivia in singles, but she insisted on playing so we could get this win. In tennis, you aren’t always going to play your best, but it’s about finding ways to win. I really liked what I saw out of Monika Sirilova today.”
The Mavericks claimed the doubles point to open the match with wins at Nos. 1 and 2 doubles. Monika Sirilova and Stefanie Tan, playing together for the first time this spring, provided the bright spot for TCU in doubles with an 8-3 win at No. 3 doubles.
Olivia Smith, who was scheduled to have the day off in singles and doubles, entered the singles lineup and grabbed a 6-0, 6-3 win over Brooke Dennis at No. 2 singles. The 50th-ranked Smith improved to 8-0 this spring.
No. 95-ranked Simona Parajova added a 6-1, 6-2 win over Giada D’Ortona at No. 3 singles, while 54th-ranked Tan was a 6-4, 7-5 winner over UTA’s Katarina Dikosavlejevic at No. 1 singles. Sirilova picked up her first win of the spring, at 6-3, 6-3 triumph over Liucija Smaizyte at No. 6 singles.
Federica Denti's match, at No. 4 singles, was stopped when the match was clinched for TCU with her leading the third set 4-1 after splitting the first two sets.
TCU returns to action Saturday when it hosts Wichita State. First serve is set for 1 p.m. at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center.
MATCH RESULTS – No. 19 TCU 4, UT Arlington 2
SINGLES
No. 1 – #54 Stefanie Tan (TCU) def. Katarina Dikosavljevic (UTA), 6-4, 7-5
No. 2 – #50 Olivia Smith (TCU) def. Brooke Dennis (UTA), 6-0, 6-3
No. 3 – #95 Simona Parajova (TCU) def. Giada D’Ortona (UTA), 6-1, 6-2
No. 4 – Federica Denti (TCU) vs. Verena Scott (UTA), 4-6, 6-4, 4-1, unfinished
No. 5 – Elizabeth Thorns (UTA) def. Kelsey Sundaram (TCU), 6-4, 6-1
No. 6 – Monika Sirilova (TCU) def. Liucija Smaizyte (UTA), 6-3, 6-3
DOUBLES
No. 1 – Brooke Dennis/Elizabeth Thorns (UTA) def. Federica Denti/Kelsey Sundaram (TCU), 8-5
No. 2 – Giada D’Ortona/Verena Scott (UTA) def. Gabi Barbosa/Simona Parajova (UTA), 8-5
No. 3 – Monika Sirilova/Stefanie Tan (TCU) def. Katarina Dikosavljevic/Christine Foote (UTA), 8-3
MATCH NOTES
TCU 8-1; national ranking #19
UTA 1-5
Order of finish: N/A
