Jayhawks Rally to Defeat No. 29 Oklahoma in a Thriller, 4-3

Kansas 4, No. 29 Oklahoma 3
Headington Family Tennis Center
April 12, 2015
Doubles
No. 1 – Maria Belen Luduena/Madison Harrison (KU) def. Malene Stripp/Emma Devine (OU) 6-2
No. 2- Lily Miyazaki/Simran Sethi (OU) def. Smith Hinton/Summer Collins (KU) 6-2
No. 3 –  Zita Engbroks/Christie Brigante (OU) def. Rachel McNeely/Alexis Czapinski (KU) 7-6
Order of Finish: 1,2,3
Singles
No. 1 -Lily Miyazaki (OU) def. Maria Belen Luduena (KU) 7-5, 6-3
No. 2 – Smith Hinton (KU) def. Simran Sethi (OU) 7-5, 6-3
No. 3 – Madison Harrison (KU) def. Abbi Melrose (OU) 6-4, 6-4
No. 4 – Summer Collins (KU) def. Zita Engbroks (OU) 6-4, 7-6
No. 5 – Christie Brigante (OU) def. Rachel McNeely (KU) 6-3, 6-0
No. 6 –  Alexis Czapinski (KU) def. Malene Stripp (OU) 6-3, 6-4
Order of Finish: 5,6,3,1,2,4

NORMAN, Okla. – Kansas women’s tennis defeated No. 29 Oklahoma in thrilling fashion as the Jayhawks edged the Sooners, 4-3, at the Headington Family Tennis Center Sunday afternoon. KU’s win snapped a six-match losing streak to the Sooners and marked the Jayhawks’ first road win over a ranked opponent during the 2014-15 campaign.
 
Kansas trailed 2-0 and 3-2 to the Sooners at different points in the match, but behind the courageous efforts of four freshmen, the Jayhawks fought back to claim the 4-3 win over the Sooners. The victory improved the young Jayhawks to 8-12 overall on the season and moved their Big 12 Conference record at 4-3. The four conference wins are the most for the KU program since it collected four wins during the 2008-09 season.
 
“I couldn’t be more proud of this team today,” said KU head coach Todd Chapman. “The way we battled adversity and fought back after feeling like we let the doubles point slip away was fantastic. We talked all week about knowing we could win these types of matches. We have been so close all year, and lost so many close matches, it was great to pull one through.”
 
Chapman saw his Jayhawks dig an early deficit as Oklahoma took the doubles point with wins on courts two and three. KU’s tandem of senior Maria Belen Luduena and freshman Madison Harrison did come away victorious as they bested Oklahoma’s Emma Devine and Malene Stripp, 6-2, on court one, but it was not enough to garner KU the first point of the match.
 
Kansas fell in to a 2-0 hole when freshman Rachel McNeely was defeated by OU’s Christie Brigante, 6-3, 6-0, on court five. KU quickly caught some momentum when it got on the board as freshman Alexis Czapinski knocked off Oklahoma’s Stripp, 6-3, 6-4, on court four.
 
Harrison knotted the score at 2-2 with her win on court three. Harrison battled Oklahoma’s Abbi Melrose, besting her by the score of 6-4, 6-4.
 
With the match all evened up, the tide rolled back into Oklahoma’s favor as Luduena was edged on court one by the Sooners’ Lily Miyazaki, 7-5, 6-3.
 
Despite finding themselves trailing late in the match, KU was able to regain the momentum and finish off the Sooners as freshmen Smith Hinton and Summer Collins stepped up to take control of their matches.
 
Hinton defeated OU’s Simran Sethi in a tightly-contested match, 7-5, 6-3, on court two to leave the remaining point up for grabs on court four. Collins took over from there as she upended Oklahoma’s Zita Engbroks, 6-4, 7-6, to secure KU’s most impressive win of the season.
 
Kansas will stay on the road as the Jayhawks close out the 2014-15 regular season with a pair of Big 12 Conference matches at Baylor and Texas. KU will take on the Bears on Friday, April 17 at 5 p.m., before traveling to Texas for a match against the Longhorns on Sunday, April 19 at 1 p.m.

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