ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The University of New Mexico women’s tennis team claimed the doubles point and four singles matches to tally a 5-2 upset victory over the No. 51 Houston Cougars on Thursday afternoon at the Linda Estes Tennis Center.
“I am so proud of the team tonight,” head coach Erica Jasper said. “Our fight and heart were tremendous. It truly was a team win.”
The Lobos, 4-1 on the season, gained early confidence after clinching the doubles point in a tight battle. Natasha Smith and Dominique Dulski gave UNM a quick edge in doubles action with their 6-2 win over Mina Markovic and Despoina Vogasari in the No. 1 spot. UH’s Elena Kordolaimi and Rocio Martin replied with a 6-1 win over Rachana Bhat and Sharon Coone in the No. 3 spot allowing the Cougars to remain in the doubles fight.
Emily Olivier and Meredith Hopson put on an impressive performance and rallied from behind in their match in the No. 2 spot against Maria Cardenas and Tina Rupert. The UNM duo claimed the doubles point for the Lobos after clinching their match in a tiebreaker; 7-6 (10-8).
“Doubles was again a see-saw battle,” Jasper added. “I was disappointed with how we started on courts 2 and 3, however Meredith (Hopson) and Emily (Olivier) were clutch at No. 2 finding their way back into that match and getting the W.”
The Lobos didn’t let up in singles action. Dulski claimed a quick 6-0, 6-3 win over Markovic to give UNM another point. Coone followed with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Rupert. The Cougars eventually got on the board with a win in the No. 2 singles spot as Olivier (ranked No. 75 nationally) dropped a close 6-3, 1-6, 6-4 match to Kordolaimi (ranked No. 52 nationally).
The remaining three matches were neck-and-neck, but Hopson powered through her match against Martin in the No. 3 position to clinch the victory for the Lobos, 7-5, 6-4.
“Meredith Hopson was clutch in the big moment with the clinch; she is such a fighter,” Jasper said. “I was also really proud of Dominique Dulski and Sharon Coone, who have been battling some injuries this week, both of them laid it on the line for the team.”
Smith and Bhat were still in the midst of their matches when the win was clinched. Smith went on to drop a 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 match to twenty-first ranked Vogasari in the No. 1 spot. Bhat tallied a 5-7, 7-5, 10-8 match over Charlotte Phillips in the No. 5 spot to give UNM another point.
“In singles, we couldn’t have asked for much more from the team,” Jasper said about the Lobos’ singles performance. “Even in the matches where we came up short, we fought tremendously hard and played some high level tennis.”
The Lobos are back in action tomorrow as they take on Nevada in a conference match up at 4 p.m. MT at the Linda Estes Tennis Center.
“We have another very tough opponent in Nevada tomorrow night, so we’ll have to take good care of our bodies tonight and be ready to battle again,” Jasper said.
NEW MEXICO VS NO. 51 HOUSTON BOX SCORE
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