Box Score EDMOND, Okla. – In one of the most competitive tournaments in Division II during the regular season, the No. 4 UIndy women's tennis team accepted the invite to compete against some of the best teams in the nation. Round one of the bracket commenced on Friday, with UIndy falling in a close battle against eighth-ranked Hawaii Pacific, 4-3.
The Greyhounds got off to a hot start, claiming the first team point with two quick doubles wins. The first doubles completed was
Anna Valiaeva and
Maria Solnyshkina versus Sarah Ikioka and Nicole Ballach. The Greyhounds took that matchup with a final score of 6-2. The Greyhounds finalized their team point with a win of the No. 3 doubles team in the nation on a 6-4 final score, as
Nikol Alekseeva and
Anna Novikova took down Marleen Tilgner and Mihoki Miyahara. The final doubles match was left unfinished, as the team of
Alina Kislitskaya and
Maja Pindelska were ahead of Elodie Busson and Helosie Le Normand on a score of 5-4.
Hawaii Pacific swung the match into their favor during the singles matches, taking four of the six matches to upset the Greyhounds. No. 20 Kislitskaya engineered a dominant performance against Miyahara, claiming the Greyhounds' first singles win, 6-2, 6-0. No. 24 Novikova was the next Greyhound to take down her opponent, defeating Tilgner 6-4, 6-4.
The next four matches didn't go in UIndy's favor, as Hawaii Pacific claimed them all for the team win. Ballach took over the match against Valiaeva, putting the final score at 6-2, 7-5. Le Normand won the next singles match
– 7-6, 6-4
– over Solnyshkina. Pindelska had a hot start on Ikioka, but couldn't close out against her opponent as she lost the match 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. No. 2 Alekseeva went the distance with Busson, but the close match ended in favor of the Sharks on a final score of 4-6, 7-5, 7-6.
The Greyhounds aren't finished yet at the ITA Indoor Championships, as they'll play in the consolation match on Saturday. That match will kick off at 3:30 p.m., playing host and ninth-ranked Central Oklahoma.
