Mississippi State
Ole Miss
No. 43 MSU Women?s Tennis Drops 4-3 Heartbreaker At No. 25 Ole Miss
April 11, 2015 | Women's Tennis
MSU dropped to 14-10 and 4-9 in the SEC with the loss, while Ole Miss improved to 14-9 and 5-8 in SEC play.
Ole Miss gained the momentum early, claiming the doubles point to open the match, as the Rebels' 61st-ranked duo of Erin Stephens and Mai El Kamash downed the MSU duo of Jasmine Lee and Louise Ronaldson 8-2 at No. 2. The Rebels earned the clinch on court three, where Bulldogs Timea Guibe and Naomi Tran fell 8-3 to UM's Marija Milutinovic and Iris Verboven,
Doubles play was suspended on court one following the clinch, where MSU's Martina Frantova and Georgiana Patrasc were tied at 6-6 with the Ole Miss duo of Julia Jones and Natalie Suk.
Although the Rebels struck first in singles with Stephens' 6-1, 6-1 win against Ronaldson on court four, the Bulldogs then responded by taking three consecutive matches for a 3-2 lead.
The first came on court five, where freshman Jennifer Brown cruised past the Ole Miss senior Verboven 6-2, 6-2. The 40th-ranked MSU sophomore sensation Lee followed with a notable 6-2, 6-2 win on court one against UM's 12th-ranked Jones, giving Lee the highest ranked win of her brief Bulldog career this spring. State took the 3-2 lead when Frantova completed an impressive 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 comeback win on court four against 125th-ranked Rebel Natalie Suk.
From that point, all eyes turned to courts two and six, where MSU's Patrasc and Guibe were battling in third sets, each looking to clinch the win for the Bulldogs. Patrasc fell in a tough battle on court two 5-7, 7-5, 6-3 to Rebel El Kamash, tying the match at 3-3. After Guibe had fought to claim a second set tiebreak win on court six to force a deciding set, she fended off a handful of match points late in the third before finally falling in a very tough 6-3, 6-7(2), 7-5 decision to UM's Zalina Khairudinova, sealing the match for the homestanding Rebels.
State's women return to action next week in the 2015 SEC Championships in Columbia, S.C. Tournament draws will be released Sunday.
For more information on Mississippi State women's tennis and updates, fans can follow the Bulldogs on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at HailStateWT.
No. 25 Ole Miss 4, No. 43 Mississippi State 3
Saturday, April 11 – Palmer/Salloum Tennis Center – Oxford, Miss.
Doubles
1. Frantova/Patrasc (MSU) vs. Jones/Suk (UM), 6-6, susp.
2. No. 61 El Kamash/Stephens (UM) def. Lee/Ronaldson (MSU), 8-2
3. Milutinovic/Verboven (UM) def. Guibe/Tran (MSU), 8-3
Singles
1. No. 40 Jasmine Lee (MSU) def. No. 12 Julia Jones (UM), 6-2, 6-2
2. Mai El Kamash (UM) def. No. 114 Georgiana Patrasc (MSU), 5-7, 7-5, 6-3
3. Martina Frantova (MSU) def. No. 125 Natalie Suk (UM), 5-7, 6-1, 6-1
4. Erin Stephens (UM) def. Louise Ronaldson (MSU), 6-1, 6-1
5. Jennifer Brown (MSU) def. Iris Verboven (UM), 6-2, 6-2
6. Zalina Khairudinova (UM) def. Timea Guibe (MSU), 6-3, 6-7(2), 7-5
Order of finish
Doubles: 1,2
Singles: 4,5,1,3,2,6
Players Mentioned
