DENVER – It always feels good to win a close one.
By that principle, the MSU Denver women's tennis team is feeling good after defeating Texas A&M-Kingsville by a 4-3 score in a dual match at the Regency Athletic Complex on Saturday.
"Really important win today," MSU Denver coach
Josh Graetz said. "I thought we started doubles really well today and that was essentially the difference in the result."
MSU Denver was rock solid in the top two doubles spots, as
Tabitha Porter and
Helena Steenberg picked up a 6-3 victory over Stephanie Baerman and Franka Sindicic in No. 1 doubles while
Brooklyn Ross and
Mackenzie Hotan won 6-2 over Victoria Romanovskaia in No. 2 doubles.
Gala Castello and
Kayla Myburgh fell 6-4 in the No. 3 position to Valerie Ruiz and Laura Montalvo, but wins by the Roadrunners' No. 1 and No. 2 pairs clinched the doubles point and gave the Roadrunners momentum heading into singles action.
Ross and Porter each carried the winning spirit into singles, picking up two important victories for MSU Denver. Ross defeated Romanovskaia in No. 1 singles, 6-3, 6-4, while Porter dispatched Montalvo by a 6-1, 6-1 count in No. 2 singles.
Castello delivered a third singles win for MSU Denver as she triumphed over Maya Donkor by a 6-4, 6-0 score in No. 4 singles.
Steenberg fell to Ruiz in No. 3 singles, 6-1, 6-0, while Myburgh succumbed to Sindicic by a 6-2, 7-5 score in No. 5 singles.
Hotan nearly picked up her second win of the day in the No. 6 position but fell to Baerman in a close match, 7-5, 7-6 (3).
All in all, it was a great momentum-builder for an MSU Denver women's team that has four key duals coming up next week.
"It was great to see some things we have been working on in practice translate to the match," Graetz said.
The Roadrunners will travel to Wichita Falls, Texas next week, taking on host Midwestern State on Thursday before playing Cameron (Okla.) and Southwest Baptist (Mo.) on Friday. The Roadrunners will conclude their Texas visit with a match against Angelo State (Texas) on Saturday.
