Colorado
Oklahoma State
No. 30 Tennis Team Rallies With Singles Play, Defeats No. 43 OSU, 4-3
March 12, 2007 | Tennis
BOULDER ? Freshman Camila Belassi clinched her first collegiate singles match with a come-from-behind three-set victory lifting the University of Colorado tennis team to a 4-3 win over No. 43 Oklahoma State, Monday afternoon at the South Campus Tennis Courts.
Belassi not only rallied from a set down, 6-2, she stormed back pushing the match to the decisive third set evening her match with Yawna Allen in the second set, 6-3. Trailing 4-3 in the third, Belassi held serve, then subsequently broke Allen in the ninth game, then served out the match, 6-4. Belassi, broke a personal three match losing streak for her seventh win of the spring and helping CU to their best start since the 1998-99 season (12-3) with a 9-3 overall record.
The 5-0 Big 12 start is the best in the 10-year history for the Buffaloes in the conference and best-ever beginning in any conference season in school history.
The Cowgirls dropped their second in a row falling to 6-2 overall and 2-2 in the Big 12.
After the Buffs lost the doubles point for only the third time this season, the Buffaloes performed a season-first, rallying to win the match securing four of the next six singles slots.
With the score 1-0 in favor of OSU, the Buffaloes quickly rallied and took the lead with straight set winners from sophomore Monica Milewski and junior Veera Nurmi.
Nurmi won her sixth of her last seven matches defeating Nataliya Shatkovskaya 6-4, 6-0 at No. 3, then Milewski won her seventh straight match defeating Iryna Tkachenko, 6-3, 6-3 at No. 1. Nurmi also handed Shatkovskaya her first conference loss (5-1).
The Cowgirls evened the team score with three-set winner at No. 6.
With the team score knotted at two, sophomore Franziska Jendrian put CU ahead 3-2 with an emotionally charged performance sweeping Lauren Simmons 6-4, 6-4 at No. 4 singles to remain unbeaten in conference play (5-0) and improving her personal spring record to nine wins. Jendrian's victory along with Belassi's clincher led CU to its third straight win and sixth victory in their last seven.
Even though CU failed to win the doubles point, they did receive outstanding play from Jendrian/Milewski at No. 2 keeping their perfect record against the Big 12 intact at 4-0, defeating Lauren Simmons and Iryna Tkachenko, 8-2. Jendrian/Milewski improved their record to 9-2 during the dual season and have won six of their last seven matches.
“I'm extremely proud of the girls,” said CU head coach Nicole Kenneally. “Losing the doubles point and being able to come back and recapture it, the girls fought through some adversity. We learned a little bit more about our team and what we're made of.”
CU continues its homestand this Wednesday, March 14 against No. 9 William & Mary (12-0) at the CU-Boulder South Campus Tennis Courts. Doubles begins at 2 p.m. with singles to follow.
No. 30
CU (9-3, 5-0 Big 12), OSU (6-2, 2-2 Big 12)
March 10, CU-Boulder South Campus Tennis Courts
1d) Allen/Shatkovskaya (OSU) def. Belassi/Torres Torres 8-3
2d) Jendrian/Milewski (CU) def. Simmons/Tkachenko 8-2
3d) Tsivka/Poskitt (OSU) def. Victoria Almagno/Martina Sedivec 8-3
Order of Finish: 2, 1, 3
1s) Monica Milewski (CU) def. Iryna Tkachenko 6-3, 6-3
2s) Camila Belassi (CU) def. Yawna Allen 2-6, 6-3, 6-4
3s) Veera Nurmi (CU) def. Nataliya Shatkovskaya 6-4, 6-0
4s) Franziska Jendrian (CU) def. Lauren Simmons 6-4, 6-4
5s) Marta Tsivka (OSU) def. Gleisy Torres Torres 6-7(1), 6-3, 6-4
6s) Jennifer Poskitt (OSU) def. Martina Sedivec 6-2, 4-6, 6-0
Order of Finish: 3, 1, 6, 4, 2*, 5
Players Mentioned
