BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – WKU Women's Tennis picked up four singles victories to claim a 4-3 win over Belmont on Saturday at the Warren County Tennis Facility at Michael O. Buchanon Park.
The Lady Toppers bounced back from a loss to SEMO the day before to improve to 7-6 with the win over the Bruins (1-8). WKU earned singles victories at the No. 3, 4, 5 and 6 positions from Virginia Madueño, Andra Sirbu, Barbara Olvera and Ariadna Fernandez against Belmont. For Madueño, it was her 10th consecutive win to improve to 11-1 this season.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Singles (Order of finish: 5,6,4,3,2,1)
- 1. Savannah Webster (BELW) def. Isabelle Einess (WKU) 6-0, 4-6, 7-6 (7-5)
- 2. Mia Jones (BELW) def. Emily Schut (WKU) 6-3, 5-7, 12-10
- 3. Virginia Madueño (WKU) def. Cielo Tapia-Cruz (BELW) 6-4, 6-3
- 4. Andra Sirbu (WKU) def. Ketevan Jeladze (BELW) 6-4, 6-0
- 5. Barbara Olvera (WKU) def. Libbie Hamilton (BELW) 6-1, 6-1
- 6. Ariadna Fernandez (WKU) def. Emma Grant (BELW) 6-2, 6-0
Doubles (Order of finish: 1,3,2)
- 1. Jessica Popiol/Savannah Webster (BELW) def. Emily Schut/Andra Sirbu (WKU) 6-3
- 2. Cielo Tapia-Cruz/Mia Jones (BELW) def. Barbara Olvera/Virginia Madueño (WKU) 7-5
- 3. Isabelle Einess/Elizabeth Sobieski (WKU) def. Ketevan Jeladze/Emma Grant (BELW) 6-4
NOTABLES
- WKU improves to 7-6 overall and 5-3 at home this season with the win.
- The Lady Toppers are now 2-1 in their current six-match homestand, with wins over Butler and Belmont.
- WKU has now won five straight matches against Belmont – with one in each of the last five seasons – and the Lady Toppers have won nine of the last 11 meetings since the 2014 season. Prior to that, the Lady Toppers had lost 13 in a row to the Bruins from 2002-2013. The series is now 17-15, with Belmont leading.
- Saturday was WKU's second outdoor match of the season.
- The match against Belmont marked the second time this season WKU has lost the doubles point but won the match. The other came against UNC Asheville in Richmond, Kentucky, on Feb. 14, when WKU beat the Bulldogs 5-2.
- Isabelle Einess and Elizabeth Sobieski improved to 3-2 overall and 2-0 at the No. 3 position when playing together in doubles this season.
- Virginia Madueño claimed her 10th consecutive singles win to improve to 11-1 this season and in her college career. The true freshman is now 1-0 at the No. 3 position – the highest in the lineup she has played for the Lady Toppers – after posting a 6-0 record at No. 4 and a 4-1 mark at No. 5.
- Andra Sirbu improved to 7-6 in singles this season. Saturday marked her first match at the No. 4 position.
- Barbara Olvera won her third straight singles match to improve to 7-5 this season. She is 4-1 at the No. 5 position.
- Ariadna Fernandez is now 7-5 in singles play after her win Saturday, with a 6-4 record at the No. 6 position.
- WKU Women's Tennis Head Coach Greg Davis has 344 career wins as a head coach. He entered the season tied for 23rd nationally in wins among active NCAA Division I Women's Tennis head coaches with at least five years as a Division I head coach, counting all victories as a coach at a four-year institution. Davis entered the season with a career winning percentage of .637, which ranked 36th among that group of coaches.
- Davis has collected 85 wins at WKU, which ranks third in program history. He is two wins from being tied with Betty Langley for second in coaching wins in program history.
QUOTABLES
- "Really proud of the team being able to regroup and battle back against a very good Belmont team. Monday will be more of the same with a talented Tennessee State team coming in to play at 1 p.m." – WKU Women's Tennis Head Coach Greg Davis, on the win over Belmont on Saturday.
NEXT UP
- The Lady Toppers will stay home to face Tennessee State on Monday, March 2, for the fourth match in a six-match homestand. The match is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. CT at the Warren County Tennis Facility at Michael O. Buchanon Park.
For all the latest on WKU Women's Tennis, follow @WKUTennis on Twitter and Instagram.
