Box Score | 2018-19 Season Statistics
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — It didn’t take long for New Mexico’s women’s tennis team to build up a 3-1 lead on Colorado, but after doing so, UNM couldn’t get the clincher, dropping the final three matches. In the end, Colorado was able to steal a 4-3 win away, dropping the Lobos to 3-3 on the season.
UNM opened with the doubles point, winning it for the fourth straight match. Yue Lin “Polly” Chen and Hsiang-Wen “Albie” Huang won at No. 2 over Ky Ecton and Sara Nayar 6-2, and then Natasha Munday and Bronte Murgett won at No. 3 over Tallulah Farrow and Megan Forster 6-4, giving UNM a 1-0 lead. With just three courts, the match started with the Lobos and Buffs playing the top three singles slots, and UNM won two of three to take a 3-1 lead. Murgett made it 2-0 with a 7-5, 6-1 win over Nayar at No. 3 singles. CU got a point back at No. 2 when Forster beat Huang 6-0, 6-3, but Ruth Copas took down CU’s number one player 6-3, 6-3, and UNM needed just one more win.
They just couldn’t get it.
At Nos. 4, 5 and 6 singles, CU picked up the opening sets in all three matches. At No. 4, Monica Malinen won 6-1 over Danielle Quevedo, Farrow took a 6-4 opening set over Munday at No. 5, and in a tough battle, Ecton defeated Chen in a first set tiebreaker 7-6 (7-2). Now UNM would have to get a second set win to force a third set, but it didn’t work out for the Lobos. Quevedo bounced back from her opening set, but fell 7-5, making it 3-2. Munday than went down 6-4, 6-3, leaving it on Chen. In a back and forth battle Chen fell behind 2-1 in the second set, but got a break and took a 3-2 lead. However, Ecton broke back and the set was square at 4-4. With everyone looking on and more than four hours after the match started, Ecton got another break and won the battle 7-6 (7-2), 6-4, and the match 4-3.
The Lobos will have a short time to lick their proverbial wounds, as the team will face a good Denver squad at DU on Friday at 12:30 p.m.
NOTES: Chen’s combined winning streak from singles and doubles ended at seven … Murgett took over the team lead in singles winning percentage at .800, moving to 8-2 … as a team, UNM improved to 40-16 in doubles, led by Chen (16-4) and Munday (15-5).