No. 19 Women's Tennis Drops Road Tilt to No. 48 Kansas, 4-1No. 19 Women's Tennis Drops Road Tilt to No. 48 Kansas, 4-1
Jon Rose / UCF Athletics

No. 19 Women's Tennis Drops Road Tilt to No. 48 Kansas, 4-1

by Aiden Kocol
Opens in a new window Box Score (PDF)

LAWRENCE, Kan. –  The No. 19 UCF women’s team dropped a 4-1 decision to the No. 48 Kansas Jayhawks on Sunday afternoon, playing indoors at the Jayhawk Tennis Center.

The win drops the Knights to 13-3 on the season and 6-2 in Big 12 play, while the Jayhawks improved to 9-7 all together and 5-2 in conference. 

Kansas secured the early momentum by claiming the doubles point. On court one, Marina Gatell and Jantje Tilbuerger earned a convincing 6-2 win on court one, but Kansas responded with victories at courts two and three, including a tightly contested 7(7)-6(4) win by Meriem Ben Ezzedine and Kyoka Kubo to clinch the point against Jade Psonka and Vladislava Andreevskaya.

In singles play, Kansas quickly extended its lead with straight-set victories on courts three and five. Yerke Arystanbekova defeated Gatell 6-1, 6-3 on court three, while Meg McCarty topped Lauren Seye 6-2, 6-2 at No. 5.

UCF got on the board thanks to Tilbuerger on court two, who rallied from a set down to defeat He Janse van Vuuren 2-6, 6-1, 6-2. Tilburger’s win extends her streak to 10-straight, including a 7-0 conference mark. She is 11-1 overall this dual-match season.

Despite the momentum from court two, Kansas sealed the match on the top court as No. 53 Kyoka Kubo outlasted Olivia Bergler in three sets, 6-2, 2-6, 6-2, clinching the team victory.

At the time of the match's conclusion, Ben Ezzedine led Andreevskaya 5-4 in the second set after dropping the first set 5-7. On court six, Anna Putilina held a 5-1 advantage in the third set against Psnoka after splitting the opening two sets.

UP NEXT
The Knights will remain on the road, taking on the No. 40 Houston Cougars on Saturday, March 28, at 2 PM. 

DOUBLES RESULTS

  1. Marina Gatell and Jantje Tilbuerger (UCF) def. Yerke Arystanbekova and Anna Putilina (KAN) 6-2
  2. He Janse van Vuuren and Meg McCarty (KAN) def. Olivia Bergler and Lauren Seye (UCF) 6-2
  3. Meriem Ben Ezzedine and Kyoka Kubo (KAN) def. Vladislava Andreevskaya and Jade Psnoka (UCF) 7-6 [7-4] 

SINGLES RESULTS

  1. #53 Kyoka Kubo (KAN) def. Olivia Bergler (UCF) 6-2 2-6 6-2 
  2. Jantje Tilbuerger (UCF) def. He Janse van Vuuren (KAN) 2-6 6-1 6-2
  3. Yerke Arystanbekova (KAN) def. Marina Gatell (UCF) 6-1 6-3 
  4. Meriem Ben Ezzedine (KAN) vs. Vladis Andreevskaya (UCF) unfinished, 5-7 5-4 
  5. Meg McCarty (KAN) def. Lauren Seye (UCF) 6-2 6-2
  6. Anna Putilina (KAN) vs. Jade Psonka (UCF) unfinished, 0-6 6-3 5-1