Women's tennis rolls OU
By: Trenten Hilburn
Updated: March 17, 2013
LUBBOCK, Texas -
No. 21 Texas Tech extended its home winning streak to 13 straight
matches with a 6-1 win over No. 28 Oklahoma on Sunday in the Lady
Raider's Big 12 Conference opener at the McLeod Tennis Center.
"I felt like this was a good way to open conference play," said Texas Tech head coach Todd
Petty. "We came out really focused in doubles. I think what it shows is that hard work pays off."
Texas Tech won its 13th doubles point in 14 tries this season, as the Lady Raiders swept
the Sooners at all three positions.
It
started at No. 3, where the senior duo of Elizabeth Ullathorne and
Caroline Starck cruised
to an 8-2 win over Mia Lancaster and Abi Melrose. The No. 61 tandem of
Nikki Sanders and Rashmi Teltumbde were not far behind, as the upended
the OU team of Emma Devine and Whitney Wofford, 8-5, to earn the point.
But
there was still one match on the court and it was a battle. The No. 14
combo of Herman
Brhane and Whitney Ritchie had built a 7-4 lead on the No. 34 tandem of
Samantha Adams and Kenna Kilgo, the defending No. 1 Big 12 position
champions. Tech's duo won the next game, broke serve and won again. All
of a sudden, it was 7-7 and a tiebreaker enued.
Adams and Kilgo had the momentum at this point and won the tiebreaker,
7-3, and the match, 8-7, to sweep doubles.
Ullathorne made easy work of Melrose, 6-4, 6-2, while Sanders used a second-set tiebreaker
over Devine to pull out a 6-2, 7-6 (8-6) win and give Tech a quick 3-0 lead.
Oklahoma's
Lancaster upset No. 118 Kilgo, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) at No. 3, to cut into
Tech's lead,
3-1, but Teltumbde answered with a straight set, 6-3, 6-4 win over
Ritchie at No. 2, to secure the Texas Tech win. It was the first time
Ritchie had lost to Texas Tech. She was 3-0 against the Lady Raiders
entering Sunday's match.
Starck
recorded career win No. 87 with a three-set victory over Wofford, 4-6,
6-2, 6-4 at
No. 5 to extend the Lady Raider lead to 5-1. Her 87 wins are the most by
any Lady Raider over the last 25 years. She ranks eighth on the career
wins list and needs eight wins to move into a tie for seventh with
former Lady Raider Lisa Roberts (1983-87, 95 wins).
Adams grinded out an upset win to close out the match, as she knocked off No. 106 Herman
Brhane, 6-7 (2-7), 6-3, 7-6 (7-4).
The No. 21 Lady Raiders return to action on Friday, as the host Big 12 newcomer West Virginia
at 6 p.m. at the McLeod Tennis Center.
