Kansas Tennis Drops Sunflower Showdown Match, 5-2, on Senior Day
April 23, 2011
LAWRENCE, Kan. –
Erin Wilbert and Paulina Los were the lone winners for KU Saturday as the Jayhawks dropped their showdown with instate rival and No. 45-ranked Kansas State, on senior day at the Jayhawk Tennis Center in Lawrence.
Wilbert won in straight sets over Petra Chuda 6-1, 7-6 and Los edged Nina Sertic in three sets, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. With the loss, Kansas dropped to (3-8, 9-12) and Kansas State improved to (6-5, 15-6).
After a ceremony honoring seniors Kate Goff and Maria Martinez, the Jayhawks took the court to square off against the Wildcats in doubles competition. The pairs of No. 68 Dylan Windom and Ekaterina Morozova and Wilbert and Sara Lazarevic both lost their doubles matches to Kansas State 8-5, while the duo of Monica Pezzotti and Los dropped a close one to the Wildcat tandem of Petra Niedermayerova and Sertic, 8-7.
Kansas State headed into singles play with a 1-0 lead over KU and would extend that advantage with straight set wins by Niedermayerova over No. 101 Morozova 6-2, 6-2 and Carmen Boreau-Ramos who snapped Windom’s singles winning streak at six matches in straight sets, 6-4, 7-5.
Wilbert was the first Jayhawk to post a victory as she put away Chuda in straight sets 6-1, 7-6 to make the overall score 3-1 in favor of K-State.
The Wildcats would take the next two sets with singles victories over Lazarevic and Pezzotti, but Kansas would win the final match of the day as freshman Los won a hard fought battle with Sertic, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.
Although the two seniors, Martinez and Goff did not take the court Saturday, they had time to reflect on their Jayhawk careers.
“The four years just went by really fast,” said Scottsdale, Ariz., native Goff. “It has not really hit me yet that this was our last home match but today really marked the end of a month full of emotions for me as I am preparing to graduate.”
Goff, who amassed a career best doubles record of 7-6 this fall, was proud of her contributions to the Jayhawk tennis program.
“Once a Jayhawk, you are always a Jayhawk,” she said. “I know that is something that my teammates and I take to heart. But just to be a part of the KU athletic program is a great honor, especially for me coming out of state.”
For the Havre De Grace, Md., native Martinez, the highlight of her four-year career came just a few weeks ago at the very same spot hers came to a close.
“Beating Mizzou this year was probably the best memory I had,” Martinez said. “That was the first time since I was a freshman that we beat them and that was a really big deal.”
Kansas will now have few days to prepare for postseason play before heading off to the Big 12 Championships in Waco, Texas where competition begins Thursday, April 28th.
No. 45 Kansas State at Kansas
April 23, 2011 – Lawrence, Kan.
Jayhawk Tennis Center
DOUBLES
1) Niedemayerova/Sertic (KSU) def. #68 Morozova/Windom (KU) 8-5
2) Bonacic/Chuda (KSU) def. Wilbert/Lazarevic(KU) 8-5
3) Gomez/Boreau-Ramos (KSU) def. Pezzotti/Los (KU) 8-7
Order of finish: 2, 1, 3
SINGLES
1) #53 Petra Niedermayerova (K-State) def. #101 Ekaterina Morozova (KU) 6-2, 6-2
2) Ana Gomez (KSU) def. Monica Pezzotti (KU) 4-6, 6-2, 6-0
3) Karla Bonacic (KSU) def. Sara Lazarevic (KU) 6-4, 7-6
4) Paulina Los (KU) def. Nina Sertic 3-6, 6-3, 6-2
5) Erin Wilbert (KU) def Petra Chuda (KSU) 6-1, 7-6
6) Carmen Borau (KSU) def. Dylan Windom (KU) 6-4, 7-5
Order of finish: 1, 6, 5, 3, 2, 4
Records: No. 45 Kansas State (15-6, 6-5 Big 12), Kansas (9-12, 3-8 Big 12)
