ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The University of New Mexico women’s tennis team tallied its fourth consecutive victory on Saturday afternoon defeating UTEP 6-1 at the Linda Estes Tennis Center. The Lobos now hold an impressive 7-1, 1-0 record.
“Overall it was a great match,” head coach Erica Jasper said. “UTEP fought really hard at every spot, and again I was pleased with how we competed under pressure.”
The Lobos claimed the doubles point after tallying wins in the No. 2 and No. 3 doubles spots. Sophomore duo Meredith Hopson and Emily Olivier teamed up for a quick 6-2 win over Jeannez Daniel and Matilda Tench. Freshman Dalina Dahlmans made her season debut as she teamed up with Sharon Coone to compete in the No. 3 position. The UNM doubles team clinched the point with a 6-3 victory over Daphne Visscher and Lois Wagenvoort.
“In doubles, despite a little loose play the first couple games, our overall execution and play was quite good,” Jasper said. “Emily (Olivier) and Meredith (Hopson) showed some good leadership at the #2 spot; it was nice for them to pick up a quick win. I was also very happy for Sharon (Coone) and Dalina (Dahlmans), who played really high energy good doubles–which was fun to see in their first match together and in Dalina’s case, her first match as a Lobo.”
Dominique Dulski and Natasha Smith led Davina Meza and Duda Santos 5-4 in the No. 1 spot when their match was called.
Dulski and Rachana Bhat picked up two quick wins in singles to give the Lobos a 3-0 lead. Dulski defeated Wagenvoort in the No. 4 postion 6-2, 6-1 while Bhat tallied a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Visscher in the No. 5 spot.
The Miners posted their first point of the day as Daniel defeated Olivier 6-3, 7-5.
Smith, Hopson, and Dahlmans were all in the midst of close battles as the score sat at 3-1. However Smith, who was named Mountain West Player of the Week this week, rallied to post a 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 win over Meza and clinch the match for the Lobos.
Dahlmans finished out her three-set match to tally her first singles victory of the season. The UNM freshman defeated Tench 5-7, 6-2, 6-4.
Hopson fought through her lengthy match against Santos in the No. 3 position to give the Lobos their sixth point of the match; final score: 7-5, 2-6, 7-6 (5).
“In singles, we can still do a better job with how we start and how we manage the match, but once again our competing and ball making were very good today,” Jasper added. “Both Rachana (Bhat) and Dominique (Dulski) took care of business quickly, which helped the team gain some confidence and close it out as the rest of the matches were much, much closer.”
This match was the last of the Lobos’ eight-match home stretch. UNM hits the road next weekend for a pair of matches against Denver and Colorado.
Twitter: @UNMWomenTennis | Facebook: Facebook.com/UNM.Women.Tennis | Instagram: newmexicowtennis