Mississippi State
Texas A&M
No. 35 State Women?s Tennis Falls 5-2 To No. 15 Texas A&M
March 28, 2015 | Women's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Despite being back in the friendly confines of the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre, the No. 35 Mississippi State women's tennis team fell in a close 5-2 decision at the hands of 15th-ranked Texas A&M on Friday afternoon.
With the loss, the Bulldogs fell to 13-6 overall and 3-5 in the SEC. Texas A&M improved to 9-4 and 6-2 in the SEC. Friday's loss was also the first loss of the season at home for MSU, which fell to 10-1 on the season at Pitts.
Although the Bulldogs earned an early advantage on all three doubles courts, the Aggies quickly took control, as Timea Guibe and Naomi Tran fell 8-3 on court 3 to TAMU's doubles tandem of Stefania Hristov and Anna Mamalat. The Aggies earned the clinch on No. 1, as the 56th-ranked duo of Eva Paalma and Rachel Pierson defeated MSU's Martina Frantova and Georgiana Patrasc, 8-3.
Doubles play was suspended after the clinch, with MSU's Jasmine Lee and Louise Ronaldson tied at 5-5 with the 80th-ranked Rutuja Bhosale and Saska Gavrilovska on court two.
Texas A&M carried the momentum into singles, where No. 77 Gavrilovska defeated MSU's 124th-ranked Ronaldson 6-3, 6-1 on court three. MSU responded on No. 1, where the 56th-ranked Lee defeated TAMU's No. 32 Rachel Pierson 6-4, 6-0. The win was Lee's third victory against a ranked opponent this season.
Although State's 81st-ranked Patrasc fell 6-1, 6-3 on court two to No. 57 Bhosale giving the Aggies a 3-1 lead, the Bulldogs continued to fight in the final three matches on court to try and pull a comeback. Frantova snapped a three-match SEC losing skid by earning a hard-fought 7-5, 6-4 victory on No. 4 over Paalma, bringing the Bulldogs to within one.
With State needing wins in the final two matches and both being close throughout the third set, the Aggies would ultimately claim both. The clincher came on No. 6, as Guibe fell 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 to TAMU's Hristov, only Guibe's second setback of the dual match season. TAMU's Mamalat completed scoring, holding off State's Jennifer Brown at No. 5 in a 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 score.
“Once again, I am proud of the way that we are competing,” said coach Daryl Greenan. “We are putting ourselves in positions to win against the best teams in the country. We are on the right track and I believe we are capable of more SEC wins down the stretch.”
Mississippi State will be back in action on Sunday, as the Bulldogs host No. 41 LSU for Senior Day. Live stats will be provided on hailstate.com.
For more information on Mississippi State women's tennis and updates, fans can follow the Bulldogs on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at HailStateWT.
No. 15 Texas A&M 5, No. 35 Mississippi State 2
March 27, 2015 – A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre – Starkville, Miss.
Doubles
1. No. 56 Paalma/Pierson (TAMU) def. Frantova/Patrasc (MSU), 8-3
2. Lee/Ronaldson (MSU) vs. No. 80 Bhosale/Gavrilovska (TAMU), 5-5, susp.
3. Hristov/Mamalat (TAMU) def. Guibe/Tran (MSU), 8-3
Singles
1. No. 56 Jasmine Lee (MSU) def. No. 32 Rachel Pierson (TAMU), 6-4, 6-0
2. No. 57 Rutuja Bhosale (TAMU) def. No. 81 Georgiana Patrasc (MSU), 6-1, 6-3
3. No. 77 Saska Gavrilovska (TAMU) def. No. 124 Louise Ronaldson (MSU), 6-3, 6-1
4. Martina Frantova (MSU) def. Eva Paalma (TAMU), 7-5, 6-4
5. Anna Mamalat (TAMU) def. Jennifer Brown (MSU), 6-3, 1-6, 6-3
6. Stefania Hristov (TAMU) def. Timea Guibe (MSU), 3-6, 6-2, 6-3
Order of finish
Doubles: 3,1
Singles: 3,1,2,4,6,5
Players Mentioned
