CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. — Laura Bernardos continued her hot streak with a fourth consecutive singles victory, but WKU Tennis dropped a 6-1 decision on the road at Austin Peay on Friday.
With the loss, WKU fell to 2-9 on the season, while the Governors improved to 6-1. Although the Lady Toppers still lead in the 29-11 all-time series, Austin Peay has now won three straight matchups.
"We played a very, very good Austin Peay team. They are the favorite to win the Ohio Valley Conference this year and we saw why today," head coach Greg Davis said. "We were a bit flat in doubles in the beginning and we never recovered in the singles matches."
In doubles play, the duo of Tristen Bryant-Otake and Lauren Joch improved to 4-4 this season at the No. 3 position with a 6-1 win over their opponents. The Governors took the other two doubles matches, however, and led 1-0 going into singles competition.
After Austin Peay claimed the first four results to clinch the team match and take a 5-0 lead, Bernardos outlasted her opponent for a come-from-behind 6-7 (5), 6-4, 10-3 in a third-set tiebreaker at the No. 2 spot. The Segovia, Spain, native improved to 6-5 on the season in singles play.
To wrap play on the day, the Governors won at the No. 5 position for the 6-1 final score.
The Lady Toppers have quick turnaround, as they host FIU on Saturday, March 20 for a 1:30 p.m. start time. It will be WKU's first home competition since April 6, 2019, as the Lady Toppers will be looking for their first-ever victory over the Panthers and win at home since March 24, 2017.
Davis added, "Our team has been resilient this year, so I'm sure we will bounce back Saturday with an improved performance."
Final Results
Singles (Order of finish: 3,4,6,1,2,5)
1: Fabienne Schmidt (APSU) def. Cora-Lynn von Dungern (WKU) 6-2, 4-6, 6-2
2: Laura Bernardos (WKU) def. Danielle Morris (APSU) 6-7 (5), 6-4, 10-3
3: Jana Leder (APSU) def. Lauren Joch (WKU) 6-2, 6-1
4: Martina Paladini-Jennings (APSU) def. Tristen Bryant-Otake (WKU) 6-2, 7-6 (5)
5: Aleks Topalovic (APSU) def. Lisa Friess (WKU) 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (4)
6: Honoka Nakanishi (APSU) def. Alexis Cramer (WKU) 6-3, 7-5
Doubles (Order of finish 3,1,2)
1: Morris/Schmidt (APSU) def. Friess/von Dungern (WKU) 6-3
2: Leder/Topalovic (APSU) def. Bernardos/Martinez (WKU) 6-4
3: Bryant-Otake/Joch (WKU) def. Albertson/Nakanishi (APSU) 6-1
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