U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. — The No. 69 University of New Mexico women’s tennis team concluded its regular season with a 4-3 road victory over the Air Force Falcons on Saturday afternoon. The Lobos are now 13-9 on the season and 4-2 in Mountain West conference action.
“I actually can’t put into words how big that win was today,” Jasper said. “First off, it was arguably the toughest crowd I’ve ever seen and unfortunately we let it affect us in the doubles.”
The Lobos once again struggled in doubles action. Air Force came out ready to fight and the Falcons’ large home crowd fueled their energy even more. Air Force tallied the doubles point after claiming two quick wins in the No. 1 and No. 2 spots.
Tracy Landram and Natasha Rizvi defeated Emily Olivier and Natasha Smith 6-0 in the No. 1 spot while Lily Forlini and Mary Meyers posted a 6-1 victory over UNM’s Dominique Dulski and Sharon Coone in the No. 2 doubles position. Meredith Hopson and Rachana Bhat were tied 4-4 with Chloe Forlini and Jocelle Rudico in the No. 3 spot when point was clinched.
Air Force jumped out to a 2-0 lead as Landram defeated Bhat 6-4, 6-4 in the No. 4 spot. Dulski replied with a 7-5, 6-2 victory over Chloe Forlini in the No. 3 spot to put UNM on the board. Olivier posted a close 6-4, 7-6 (3) win over senior Rizvi in the No. 2 spot to even up the score.
Hopson dropped a tightly contested 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (3) match to Meyers in the No. 2 spot giving the Falcons a slight 3-2 edge. Baklini followed with an impressive 6-3, 6-2 win over Rudico in the No. 6 spot putting the score at 3-3.
It all came down to Coone’s battle with Lily Forlini in the No. 5 position. The Lobo freshman easily claimed the first set 6-3, but the second set was neck-and-neck. Coone eventually prevailed in the second set 7-6 (3) to claim the win for the Lobos.
“I was super impressed with how we responded in singles,” Jasper said. “I could argue that the four singles matches we won were some of our best of the season. None were very pretty, but we competed with unreal energy and fight. Obviously Sharon (Coone) had the big moment, clinching the match for the 4-3 win, but I could argue that Susie (Baklini) might have been our hero today, making quick work of an experienced 6 when we needed it.”
The Lobos are now heading home to prepare to host the 2015 Mountain West Championships taking place next week (April 22-26) on the Lobos’ home turf.
COMPLETE RESULTS
Doubles:
1) Landram/Rizvi (AFA) def. Olivier/Smith (UNM), 6-0
2) L. Forlini/Meyers (AFA) def. Dulski/Coone (UNM), 6-1
3) Hopson/Bhat (UNM) & C. Forlini/Rudico (UNM), 4-4 unfinished
Order of Finish: (1, 2)
Singles:
1) Olivier (UNM) def. Rizvi (AFA), 6-4, 7-6 (3)
2) Meyers (AFA) def. Hopson (UNM), 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (3)
3) Dulski (UNM) def. C. Forlini (AFA), 7-5, 6-2
4) Landram (AFA) def, Bhat (UNM), 6-4, 6-4
5) Coone (UNM) def. L. Forlini (AFA), 6-3, 7-6 (3)
6) Baklini (UNM) def. Rudico (AFA), 6-3, 6-2
Order of Finish: (4, 3, 1, 2, 5, 6)