University of Houston
Rice
Tennis Falls to Rice 4-3 at C-USA Championship
4/18/2008 12:00:00 AM | Tennis
April 18, 2008
HOUSTON-- The University of Houston women's tennis team lost to Rice, 4-3, on the second day of the Conference USA Women's Tennis Championship on Hoff Courts.
The Cougars close out their season at 16-11.
"We had two chances to win in the third set," head coach John Severance said. "We didn't come up with it when we needed to."
The Owls and Cougars split the first two doubles matches, and junior Jordan McCombs and freshman Lucy Forward fought hard to clinch in the point, winning their No. 1 doubles matchup against Julie Chao and Dominique Karas, 9-8.
The No. 3 doubles squad of senior Leila Salek and sophomore Vicky Simpson knocked off the Owls' Emily Braid and Varsha Shiva Shankar, 8-5. The No. 2 team of junior Lynley Wasson and freshman Joanna Kacprzyk fell, 8-1 to Tiffany Lee and Rebecca Lin.
In singles play, after Forward lost a two-set match 6-3, 6-0, against Chao at No. 1, Salek defeated Karas 6-3, 6-1 at No. 2.
Sophomore Neila Starratt fell to Lee 6-3, 6-3 at No. 3, and Wasson overtook Lin 6-2, 6-1 at No. 4.
Shiva Shanker defeated McCombs in a three-set match at No. 6, 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, to tie it up 3-3.
It would come down to the final match up at No. 5 singles between Simpson and Braid. Simpson took the first set, 6-1, but fell in the second and third set 6-4.
"You really don't get any closer to the semi-finals in the conference championship and upsetting a nationally ranked team. I am disappointed in the loss and that our season is over," Severance said.
Besides Rice, advancing in the tournament was No. 1 Tulsa, who knocked out No. 8 ECU 5-0, while fourth-seeded SMU beat No. 5 Southern Miss, 4-2. No. 2 Marshall downed seventh-seeded UCF 4-3.
The Championship will continue Saturday at 10 a.m. with No. 1 Tulsa facing No. 4 SMU. The second match of the day between No. 3 Rice and No. 2 Marshall is slated to begin at 2 p.m.
Players Mentioned
