RIVERSIDE, Calif. – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros women's tennis team was defeated 4-2 by the UC Riverside (UCR) Highlanders Tuesday at the SRC Tennis Courts.
UTRGV (5-5) claimed the 1-0 advantage by winning on the first and third doubles courts. The top duo of graduate student
Isabelle Bahr and junior
Marjorie Souza continued to play well together, quickly earning a 6-1 win. Sophomores
Yaiza Vazquez and
Valentina Urraco were unstoppable on Court Three, winning 6-1 to secure the doubles point.
Singles action was tightly contested across all courts. Senior
Lea Karren was the only Vaqueros netter to win the first set of her bout. UCR (3-10) picked up straight-set wins on the second and sixth courts to jump on top, 2-1, but Karren evened things up at 2-2 with a good win at No. 3. She held off a comeback attempt in the second set, coming up clutch in big moments with her athletic, energetic play to earn a 6-2, 7-6 (7:1) win.
Souza and Vazquez both showed their resilience to come back from first-set losses in the first and fourth singles matches, respectively. They forced a pair of full third sets with the team victory still up for grabs, but the Highlanders captured a 6-4, 7-5 win in the fifth flight to extend their lead to 3-2 as those third sets began, needing just one win to end it due to the match following a play-to-clinch format.
Souza dropped a tight first in the top flight, falling 7-6 after a battle with
Brionna Nguyen. She came back to control the second, 6-2, and opened an early lead in the deciding third, but Nguyen clawed back to hold a 5-3 advantage. Souza continued to fight, closing the gap to 5-4, but Nguyen held on to take the set, 6-4, and clinch UCR's victory.
Vazquez fell 6-4 in the first set on Court Four, then bounced back nicely to take the second, 6-4. She was trailing 1-4 in the third when her match went unfinished as UCR won at No. 1.
Up next for the Vaqueros is a 3 p.m. match Thursday at UC San Diego.
Complete Results
Doubles (1, 3)
1.
Isabelle Bahr/
Marjorie Souza (UTRGV) def. Brionna Nguyen/Maya Youssef (UCR) 6-1
2.
Lea Karren/
Kristal Dule (UTRGV) vs. Sydney Tran/Niki Shahbazi (UCR) 3-4, inc.
3.
Yaiza Vazquez/
Valentina Urraco (UTRGV) def. Kamya Nair/Kei Kato (UCR) 6-1
Singles (2, 6, 3, 5, 1)
1. Brionna Nguyen (UCR) def.
Marjorie Souza (UTRGV) 7-6, 2-6, 6-4
2. Maya Youssef (UCR) def.
Isabelle Bahr (UTRGV) 6-1, 6-3
3.
Lea Karren (UTRGV) def. Kamya Nair (UCR) 6-2, 7-6 (7:1)
4.
Yaiza Vazquez (UTRGV) vs. Kei Kato (UCR) 4-6, 6-4, 1-4, inc.
5. Niki Shahbazi (UCR) def.
Kristal Dule (UTRGV) 6-4, 7-5
6. Sydney Tran (UCR) def.
Valentina Urraco (UTRGV) 6-4, 6-0
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