Mississippi State
Missouri
No. 24 MSU Women?s Tennis Wins Third Straight, 4-1 At Missouri
April 15, 2016 | Women's Tennis
Columbia, Mo. – To open the final weekend of regular season conference play, the 24th-ranked Mississippi State women's tennis team (15-7, 6-6 Southeastern Conference) downed No. 65 Missouri (15-11, 2-10 SEC) 4-1 Thursday evening on the road, rallying from dropping the opening doubles point to dominate in singles for its third-straight league win.
To start the day, Mizzou's doubles duo of Kelli Hine and Clare Raley ousted MSU's tandem of Jasmine Lee and Louise Ronaldson 6-2 on court 2. Following at the No. 3 position, Tigers Brittany Lashway and Cassidy Spearman upset State's pair of No. 85 Georgiana Patrasc and Anastasia Rentouli 6-4 to clinch the doubles point and give UM a 1-0 lead. The remaining doubles match was suspended 6-5 in favor of the Bulldogs.
In singles, the Bulldogs responded very strong, taking all six of the first sets to set up the win.
State's 14th-ranked Lee would be the first off the courts as she made quick work of 62nd-ranked Tiger Machado Santos 6-2, 6-1 at the top spot. Following on court 5, Bulldog Kristina Vozniak knocked off Tiger Lashway 6-4, 6-2 to give MSU a 2-1 lead. State's Madison Harrison would extend the lead to 3-1 as she held off UM's Brianna Lashway 6-4, 6-4 at No. 3.
State's 33rd-ranked Patrasc then continued her stellar senior campaign, clinching the match as she held off Mizzou's Hine 6-3, 7-5 on court 2 for her 17th dual match win of the spring (17-2) to make the final score 4-1.
The remaining two matches were suspended with MSU's No. 100 Rentouli holding a 6-3, 5-4 lead on court 4 and Bulldog Jennifer Brown being tied 7-6(3), 2-6 at the No. 6 position.
“We started out a little flat and Missouri really came out swinging,” head coach Daryl Greenan said. "They deserve credit for their aggressive play in claiming the doubles point. Winning the first set on all six courts in singles was the perfect response on our part. In the end it was what I have come to expect from this team. They continue to stay energized and work hard for every win. They did not let the doubles distract them and were able to get this hard-earned win over another solid SEC opponent."
State's six SEC wins this season have set a new school record.
MSU will travel to No. 29 Arkansas for its last regular season conference match on Saturday, April 16, at 1 p.m. CT. The Razorbacks boast two ranked players in No. 27 Yuliya Lysa and No. 77 Ana Oparenovic. On the doubles side Lysa teams up with Shannon Hudson to compose the nation's 47th-ranked tandem.
Following Saturday's match, State will head to Baton Rouge, La., for the 2016 SEC Championship, April 20-24.
For more information on Mississippi State women's tennis and updates, fans can follow the Bulldogs on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at HailStateWT.
No. 24 Mississippi State 4, No. 65 Missouri 1
April 14, 2016 – Mizzou Tennis Complex – Columbia, Mo.
Doubles
Order of match finish…2,3
1. No. 42 Madison Harrison/Kristina Vozniak (MSU) vs. Brianna Lashway/Bea Machado Santos (MIZ) 6-5 (susp.)
2. Kelli Hine/Clare Raley (MIZ) def. Jasmine Lee/Louise Ronaldson (MSU) 6-2
3. Brittany Lashway/Cassidy Spearman (MIZ) def. #83 Georgiana Patrasc/Anastasia Rentouli (MSU) 6-4
Singles
Order of match finish…1,5,3,2
1. No. 14 Jasmine Lee (MSU) def. No. 62 Bea Machado Santos (MIZ) 6-2, 6-1
2. No. 35 Georgiana Patrasc (MSU) def. Kelli Hine (MIZ) 6-3, 7-5
3. Madison Harrison (MSU) def. Brianna Lashway (MIZ) 6-4, 6-4
4. #100 Anastasia Rentouli (MSU) vs. Cassidy Spearman (MIZ) 6-3, 5-4 (susp.)
5. Kristina Vozniak (MSU) def. Brittany Lashway (MIZ) 6-4, 6-2
6. Jennifer Brown (MSU) vs. Clare Raley (MIZ) 7-6(3), 2-6 (susp.)
