Cowgirls Continue Strong Performances in Fall Season Finales

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Cowgirls Continue Strong Performances in Fall Season Finales

November 04, 2016 | Cowgirl Tennis

STILLWATER – Highlighting an impressive Friday for the Oklahoma State women's tennis team, the Cowgirl doubles tandem of Carla Tur Mari and Vladica Babic advanced to the USTA/ITA National Indoor Championships semifinals in Flushing, N.Y. Senior Viktoriya Lushkova advanced to the quarterfinals of indoors as well, while the rest of the Cowgirls went a combined 5-0 in singles on the opening day of the SMU Red and Blue Challenge in Dallas, Texas.

After a pair of wins, including an upset of the tournament's second-seeded tandem, on Thursday Tur Mari and Babic were back at it Friday, knocking off No. 19 Belinda Woolcock and Josie Kuhlman of Florida in three sets. The Cowgirls started the match off in control, edging the Gator duo, 6-4, in the first set. After Woolcock and Kuhlman came back with a 6-1 victory in the second frame, Tur Mari and Babic rebounded by taking the match in a 10-6 third-set super tiebreaker.

The win marks the first time a Cowgirl doubles team has advanced to the USTA/ITA National Indoor Championships semifinals since Kelsey Laurente and Viktoriya Lushkova made a run through the tournament's main doubles draw in 2014. It's the second time in program history that a doubles team has made the indoor semifinals. The Cowgirls will face Jada Hart and Ena Shibahara of UCLA in the semifinals on Saturday afternoon at 2:30 p.m. CT.

In singles, Lushkova opened the day with a 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 victory over Pepperdine's Ashley Lahey to advance to the quarterfinals. Lushkova would fall short in the quarterfinals, however, dropping her match to top-ranked and fourth-seeded Hayley Carter of North Carolina, 6-3, 6-1.

The Cowgirls competing in Dallas picked up five singles wins on the day.

Senior Katarina Adamovic downed Wyoming's Dorottya Jonas, 6-3, 6-0. Lena Ruppert, also matched up with a Wyoming opponent, dropped Tessa Van Der Ploeg, 6-3, 6-4, in her first singles match of the weekend. Sophomore Katarina Stresnakova finished the day's sweep of Wyoming with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Milka Genkova.

Freshman Aliona Bolsova continued her strong fall season, handling Liberty's Rebekah Anderson, 6-0, 6-1. Sofia Blanco wrapped up the day with a 6-0, 6-4 victory over Evangeline Crist of Liberty.

USTA/ITA National Indoor Championships
Singles – Round of 16
Viktoriya Lushkova (OSU) def. Ashley Lahey (PEPP) 7-5, 4-6, 6-3

Singles – Quarterfinals
(4) Hayley Carter (UNC) def. Viktoriya Lushkova (OSU) 6-3, 6-1

Doubles – Quarterfinals
Babic/Tur Mari (OSU) def. Woolcock/Kuhlman (UF) 6-4, 1-6, 10-6

SMU Red and Blue Challenge
Singles
Katarina Adamovic (OSU) def. Dorottya Jonas (WYO) 6-3, 6-0
Lena Ruppert (OSU) def. Tessa Van Der Ploeg (WYO) 6-3, 6-4
Katarina Stresnakova (OSU) def. Milka Genkova (WYO) 6-3, 6-1
Aliona Bolsova (OSU) def. Rebekah Anderson (LU) 6-0, 6-1
Sofia Blanco (OSU) def. Evangeline Crist (LU) 6-0, 6-4

Doubles
Van der Ploeg/Koonik (WYO) def. Blanco/Bolsova (OSU) 6-4
Dollar/Crist (WYO) def. Stresnakova/Ruppert (OSU) 6-3