GOLDEN SUNS TENNIS SPLITS IT TWO ROAD MATCHES LAST WEEK

        RUSSELLVILLE, Arkansas – Arkansas Tech Golden Suns Tennis split its two matches last week, including opening Gulf South Conference play with a loss to Delta State.

Tech, who is now 5-3 on the season and 0-1 in the GSC, opened the week by posting a 9-0 win at John Brown on Wednesday and then fell 7-2 to Delta State on Sunday at Arkadelphia.

Against JBU, Tech opened with three wins in doubles, including posting an 8-0 victory at No. 1 doubles by sophomore Saki Matsuoka (Saitama, Japan) and junior Anna Carson (Fort Smith, Ark.). In singles action, Tech gave up only seven points in six matches, including collecting 6-0, 6-0 straight set wins at No. 1, No. 2 and No. 5 singles.

In Sunday’s GSC opener against DSU, Tech opened the match by dropping two of three in doubles, but Carson and Matsuoka won at No. 1 doubles by a score of 8-4. Tech’s other win was collected at No. 3 singles by freshman Michelle Yu (Flower Mound, Texas). Yu defeated DSU’s Milena Araujo after she was forced to retire in the second set due to injury. Yu, who lost the first set, 6-3, was leading 5-3 when Araujo was injured.

“I was proud of players’ effort against a very good Delta State team,” Golden Suns Tennis Coach Abby Davis said. “I can’t remember the last time we were able to take two matches from them.”

 Tech will return to action this week when it returns home to face Arkansas-Fort Smith and Southern Arkansas on Wednesday, March 12, before hosting Northeastern State on Saturday and Christian Brothers on Sunday. Wednesday’s UAFS match begins at 8:30 a.m., while the SAU match is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m.

 Results

Tech 9, John Brown 0

Singles

No 1. – Anna Carson (Tech) def. Emily Caneday (JBU), 6-0, 6-0

No. 2 – Saki Matsuoka (Tech) def. Christine Hendee (JBU), 6-0, 6-0

No. 3 – Michelle Yu (Tech) def. Kasey Wiens (JBU), 6-2, 6-1

No. 4 – Puja Paul (Tech) def. Audrey Phillips (JBU), 6-1, 6-0

No. 5 – Kristen Brown (Tech) def. Amanda Keenan (JBU), 6-0, 6-0

No. 6 – Whitney Simmons (Tech) def. Melinda Malliet (JBU), 6-2, 6-1

Doubles

No. 1 – Carson/Matsuoka (Tech) def. Hendee/Wiens (JBU), 8-0

No. 2 – Paul/Yu (Tech) def. Malliet/Keenan (JBU), 8-3

No. 3 – Brown/Simmons (Tech) def. Caneday/Phillips (JBU), 8-3

Delta State 7, Tech 2

Singles

No 1. – Katharina Nett (DSU) def. Anna Carson (Tech), 7-5, 6-0

No. 2 – Ceeile Benzaki (DSU) def. Saki Matsuoka (Tech), 7-5, 6-4

No. 3 – Michelle Yu (Tech) def. Milena Araujo (DSU), 3-6, 5-2 ret. injured

No. 4 – Krystle Ozols (DSU) def. Puja Paul (Tech), 6-3, 6-0

No. 5 – Tatiana Bouchaud (DSU) def. Kristen Brown (DSU), 6-2, 6-2

No. 6 – Paulina Potapova (DSU) def. Whitney Simmons (Tech), 6-4, 6-0

Doubles

No. 1 – Carson/Matsuoka (Tech) def. Nett/Ozols (DSU), 8-4

No. 2 – Bouchaud/Benzaki (DSU) def. Paul/Yu (Tech), 8-5

No. 3 – Prisciala Duarte/Araujo (DSU) def. Brown/Simmons, 8-2

-- Tech Athletics --