By FHSU SPORTS INFORMATION
Fort Hays State Tennis is now 4-2 on the season after a 5-2 loss to Minnesota State in Hays on Wednesday (March 6). The Tigers took one of the three doubles matches contested and picked up both of their team points in singles in matches that went to the final tiebreaking set. Tight results in another pair of singles matches showed the Tigers were close to flipping the match in their favor.
The No. 2 doubles team of Irina Alfonso and Ines Latorre won their match 6-4 over Carnelutti and Minisy of MSU, but the Mavericks were too strong in the No. 1 and No. 3 matches. The Tigers’ No. 1 team of Fiorella Mendez and Yone Pereiro fell 6-0, and the No. 3 team of Grace Unruh and Bethan Gill fell 6-1.
With one team point already in hand, Minnesota State only needed to take half of the six singles matches contested. But it would not be easy for them as the Tiger lineup put up a valiant fight. Alfonso (No. 1) and Pereiro (No. 3) both won their matches in thrilling decisive tiebreaker sets to claim both team points for the Tigers. After falling in the first set 7-6 (8-6), Alfonso rallied to win the second set 6-4 and then ran away with a 10-3 win in the tiebreaking set over Chiara Carnelutti. Pereiro cruised to a 6-1 first-set win, but came up short in the second set 7-5. She went on to outlast Daria Podmogilnaia in an epic 18-16 result in the tiebreaking set to give the Tigers a second win.
The Tigers were not that far away from flipping the script on the Mavericks in singles play. At No. 6, Minnesota State’s McKenna DeMarce had to win by the tiebreaker set over Mendez of FHSU. Mendez took the first set 6-4, but fell 7-5 in the second and then 10-6 in the tiebreaker. Bethan Gill was only two points shy in each set of her match at No. 5 with Elizabeth Felderman, falling 6-4, 6-4.
Latorre generated four points within her No. 2 singles match and Unruh generated five points within her No. 3 singles match. Three exhibition matches were also played. Heidi Lubbers and Hope Lubbers lost a tight doubles contest 6-4. Hope also played a singles exhibition and fell 8-6. Ines Steeman fell 8-3 in her singles exhibition.
Fort Hays State heads to Colorado this weekend for a pair of matches with Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference schools. The Tigers face CSU-Pueblo on Saturday (March 9) at 3 p.m. (2 p.m. MT) and MSU Denver on Sunday (March 10) at 12 p.m. (11 a.m. MT).