STILLWATER, Okla. – A history-making season for the UCF women’s tennis team came to a close Thursday evening, falling 4-1 to top seed and top-ranked Oklahoma State in the quarterfinals of the 2024 Big 12 Championship. An early push in singles proved to be not enough to overcome the No. 1 Cowgirls as the Knights’ Championship run came to an end.
The Pokes got out to an early lead after taking the doubles point from wins on courts one and three. The singles energy shifted ever so slightly, with UCF taking two first sets and going to a close tiebreaker on a third. OSU struck back, taking courts five and six in quick, straight-set fashion.
Sophia Biolay, who was one of the Knights to take her first set, was up for a difficult battle at court one against No. 15 Anastasiya Komar. Biolay, ranked No. 125 in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association singles poll, made a strong statement in her first set, with a 6-3 victory. The junior continued to apply pressure to the Cowgirl in the second set, adamant to put a point on the board. In her highest-ranked win of her career and third in as many matches, Biolay triumphed 6-3, 6-2 to close the season with four consecutive singles wins.
The remaining courts were locked in nail-biting battles. Court two saw No. 106 Noel Saidenova take on No. 2 Ange Oby Kajuru for the first time this season. The first set was an all-out battle, ending in a tight tiebreak which saw the Cowgirl emerge with the 7-6(4) first-set win. Olivia Lincer on court three was seeking revenge against No. 55 Lucia Peyre, who defeated her on Senior Knight at the USTA National Campus. The back-and-forth contest turned out to be the clinching point for Oklahoma State once more, with Peyre taking the match 7-5, 7-5 to send the Cowgirls to the semifinals.
When the match was clinched, Jantje Tilbuerger had taken the lead at court four over No. 93 Ayumi Miyamoto, 6-4, 3-6, 3-1, unfinished.