Colorado Falls to No. 42 Kansas

BOULDER – Colorado fell short in singles play, falling to No. 42 Kansas 4-2 Sunday afternoon at the CU South Tennis Courts as the Buffaloes wrap up the first weekend back in the Big 12.

Colorado (6-4, 0-2 Big 12) won the doubles point for the fifth straight match but, like the last two, could not convert that into singles. After taking the initial singles match, Kansas (7-5, 1-1) claimed the next four to clinch the match.

The Buffs were without Aya El Sayed, who has played the past three matches at No. 1 doubles and most of the season at No. 2 singles. With her out of the lineup, Colorado had to mix up the doubles lineup and move the singles lineup forward.

"I'm proud of the ladies; they continue to just roll with the punches," head coach Anthony Pham said. Today, we had Aya [El Sayed] out, so we had to rework a doubles team and battled. That's the tough part of sports: you're going to win some and lose some. But I am really pleased with how we compete and refuse to back down. Whatever hand that's given to us on that particular day we just nod our heads and keep going."

Without El Sayed, Ema Bubalo and Pia Rebec took the courts together for the first time in their careers. They clinched the doubles point after Lera Alexin and Mila Stanojevic won their match, extending an undefeated streak to six this spring. Bubalo and Rebec won the final six games to return from a 4-0 deficit.

Stanojevic's lone singles win came in straight sets over Gracie Mulville, the country's No. 102-ranked player. This was her 63^rd singles win of her career and the first conference win at No. 1 singles.

HOW IT HAPPENED
A shake-up in the doubles order moved Alexin and Stanojevic up to No. 2 doubles, and they continued to stay undefeated, moving to 6-0 this spring. They defeated Jasmine Adams and Kyoka Kubo by winning the final three games to take the match 6-4.

The newest doubles duo, Bubalo and Rebec, took some time to get used to playing with each other. The pair went down 4-0 to Yerkezhan Arystanbekova and Anna Putilina at No. 3 doubles. They found their footing and rattled off six straight games to clinch the doubles point for Colorado.

At the top spot, Anya Nelson and Rixt van der Werff were one point away from clinching the doubles point against Mulville and Heike Janse van Vuuren. They led the match 5-4 and had a game lead of 40-15 when doubles were clinched, leaving the match unfinished.

Stanojevic earned the first win as the match transitioned to singles, winning 6-3, 6-4 over Mulville, ranked No. 102 in the country. This was her win over a ranked opponent in her career.

Kansas scored its first point of the afternoon with a victory from Kubo over Van der Werff. The first set was quick in Kubo's favor, 6-2. In the second set, Van der Werff battled back, taking a 5-4 lead after going down 4-1. Kubo responded by winning three games in a row to take the match.

At No. 4 singles, Bubalo took an early 5-2 lead in the first set against Janse van Vuuren but lost 7-6 (2) in a tiebreaker. Bubalo ran out of steam in the second, losing 6-3, allowing the Jayhawks to tie the match 2-2.

Fighting to force a third set after losing the first 7-5, Alexin battled to take a 5-4 lead in the second set. Leading the next game 40-30, Alexin had what she thought was a shot to force a third set but was overturned. Meriem Ben Ezzedine took the momentum and won the final three games to clinch the match.

Playing at No. 2 singles for the first time in her career, Tokac battled against Maria Titova. After losing the first set 6-2, Tokac outlasted Titova in a tiebreaker 7-6 (6) to force a third set. In the final set, Tokac took an early lead 4-2, but Titova recovered to tie the match 4-4. Tokac came one game away, leading 5-4, but lost the final three, allowing Kansas to clinch the match 4-2.

Rebec's match at No. 6 singles was unfinished against Adams. She won the first set 6-4 and nearly completed a second set comeback after trailing 5-2. Rebec won two straight games but could not complete the flip, falling 6-4. The match ended in the final set with Adam's leading 5-4 but with Rebec about to tie the set at 5-5.

UP NEXT
Colorado will hit the road for its first time in the Big 12 to take on Utah at 11 a.m. on March 6, followed by BYU at 12 p.m. on March 8.

RESULTS
No. 72 Colorado 2, No. 42 Kansas 4
March 2, 2025
CU South Tennis Courts
Boulder, Colo.

Doubles

Anya Nelson/Rixt van der Werff (CU) vs. Gracie Mulville/Heike Janse van Vuuren (KAN) 5-4, unf.
Lera Alexin/Mila Stanojevic (CU) def. Jasmine Adams/Kyoka Kubo (KAN) 6-4
Ema Bubalo/Pia Rebec (CU) vs. Yerkezhan Arystanbekova/Anna Putilina (KAN) 6-4

Order of Finish: (2,3*)

Singles

Mila Stanojevic (CU) def. No. 102 Gracie Mulville (KAN) 6-3, 6-4
Maria Titova (KAN) def. Betina Tokac (CU) 6-2, 6-7 (6), 7-5
Kyoka Kubo (KAN) def. Rixt van der Werff (CU) 6-2, 7-5
Heike Janse van Vuuren (KAN) def. Ema Bubalo (CU) 7-6 (2), 6-3
Pia Rebec (CU) vs. Jasmine Adams (KAN) 6-4, 4-6, 4-5, unf.
Meriem Ben Ezzedine (KAN) def. Lera Alexin (CU) 7-5, 7-5

Order of Finish: (1,3,4,6,2*)

NOTES
Mila Stanojevic recorded her 60^th career doubles win at Colorado, the 16^th most in school history. She recorded her 63rd career win in singles, the 25^th most in CU history. She has 123 total wins, both doubles and singles, ranking No. 21 in CU history.

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Team Stats

Players Mentioned

Lera Alexin

Ema Bubalo

Aya El Sayed

Anya Nelson

Pia Rebec

Mila Stanojevic

Betina Tokac

Rixt van der Werff