April 1, 2006

LUBBOCK, Texas - Texas Tech women's tennis fell to top ranked Baylor after a promising doubles match victory. The No. 50 Lady Raiders now sit at 12-6 overall and 5-3 in Big 12 play.

Doubles yet again proved to be in the favor of the Red Raiders as they began the match with a 1-0 lead over the Bears. As a team, Tech is 14-4 in doubles point victories. The first win came from a near shutout by Erin Hunter and Katja Kovacic with a score of 8-1, putting their record at 13-4, 7-1 in Big 12. Tara Browning and Lakann Wagley immediately followed with a 8-3 victory, clinching the doubles point for Tech. Browning and Wagley now sit 9-7 this season. The team of Janet Durham and Cigdem Duru just missed a win over Baylor's Iva Mihaylova and Zuzana Krchnakova, 8-7. Durham and Duru now sit 10-3 on the season.

Coach Cari Groce said the team was anxious to bounce back after a loss to A&M, and she believed doubles would set the pace for the entire match.

"The girls came out here knowing they were up against a top ten team, and they went after them right away," Groce commented. "It is good for the team that we can carry over the passion from doubles to singles play."

In singles action, Tech came out strong as they looked to retaliate from a loss against the A&M Aggies. To their dismay, the Bears didn't stutter in singles competition. No. 2 Cigdem Duru was the first to suffer a loss to Zuzana Cerna, followed by Samantha van der Drift to Baylor's Iva Mihaylova. In what was a grueling No. 1 battle, Tech's Browning came up short against NCAA defending champion Zuzana Zemenova. The clinching match point for the bears came after No. 4 Daniela Covello edged out Wagley, 7-6, 6-4.

Two matches that looked hopeful for Tech and put them on the board were No. 3 Janet Durham and No. 6 Katja Kovacic, as both had won the first set of their matches. Unfortunately, neither could secure the win and lost in their third set.

"I want to give credit to Tech because they played well, came out and kicked our butt in doubles, and really pushed us in singles," said Baylor Head Coach Joey Scrivano. "I am just really glad that we could leave here today with a win."

Lady Raider Tennis hits the road again as they take on the Texas Longhorns in Austin on April 8. For complete details of Lady Raider tennis, visit www.texastech.com.

No. 9 Baylor 6, No. 50 Texas Tech 1

Doubles

1.Tara Browning/Lakann Wagley (TTU) def. Zuzana Zemenova/Daniela Covello (BU), 8-3

2.Zuzana Cerna/Klara Zrustova (BU) def. Janet Durham/Cigdem Duru (TTU), 8-7

3.Katja Kovacic/Erin Hunter (TTU) def. Iva Mihaylova/Zuzana Krchnakova (BU), 8-1

Singles

No.1 Zuzana Zemenova (BU) def. Tara Browning (TTU), 6-4, 7-5

No.2 ZuzanaCerna (BU) def. Cigdem Duru (TTU), 7-5, 6-2

No.3 Klara Zrustova (BU) def. Janet Durham (TTU), 6-1, 5-7, 6-1

No.4 Daniela Covello (BU) def. Lakann Wagley (TTU), 7-6, 6-4

No.5 Iva Mihaylova (BU) def. Samantha van der Drift (TTU), 0-6, 2-6

No.6 Zuzana Krchnakova (BU) def. Katja Kovavic (TTU), 5-7, 7-5, 10-6