March 22, 2009
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - A day after dropping a tough 4-3 decision to Troy on Saturday, the Lamar University women's tennis team bounced back with a 5-2 win over West Virginia to complete play at the Lady Eagle Classic on the campus of Southern Miss.
The Lady Cardinals opened the contest by claiming the doubles point for a 1-0 lead. Mariaryeni Gutierrez and Maria Gutierrez paired for an 8-6 win over Gabriela Blaskovicova and Ashley Pilsbury at No. 1, while Manami Kuroda and Carla Nava defeated Veronica Cardenas and Olga Elkin 8-5 at No. 3.
In singles play the Lady Cards make quick work of West Virginia in the top four spots to seal the victory. Mariaryeni Gutierrez rolled over Stephanie LaFortune 6-1, 6-1 at No. 1, Maria Gutierrez handed Kathryn Haught a 6-1, 6-3 loss at No. 2, Nava defeated Elkin 6-3, 6-2 at No. 3 and Manijee Ashrafi took out Veronica Cardenas 6-2, 6-2 at No. 4 for the win. The two pointes claimed by West Virginia came at No. 5 and No.6 as Pilsbury defeated Manami Kuroda 6-3, 7-5 at No. 5 and Monique Burton handed. Salina Aranda a 6-1, 6-4 at No. 6.
"Every player on our team gave everything they had today," head coach David Wong said. "After a tough loss to Troy yesterday, I am really proud of the way the ladies responded today. We had four convincing wins in singles and in the two matches we dropped, the individuals fought very hard.
"We'll take this win and use it to give us some momentum for the big week we have ahead of us. With Pan Am on Thursday and UTSA on Saturday, we are going to need to be ready to play some good tennis."
The win gives LU a final record of 2-1 at the Lady Eagle Classic, and gives them an 8-5 record on the year. They will be back in action on Thursday when they play host to the Lady Broncs of UT Pan American at the Cardinal Courts at 2 p.m.
Below is a list of the Lady Cardinals results from Sunday against west Virginia:
Singles:
1. Mariaryeni Gutierrez def. Stephanie LaFortune 6-1, 6-1
2. Maria Gutierrez def. Kathryn Haught 6-1, 6-3
3. Carla Nava def. Olga Elkin 6-3, 6-2
4. Manijee Ashrafi def. Veronica Cardenas 6-2, 6-2
5. Ashley Pilsbury def. Manami Kuroda 6-3, 7-5
6. Monique Burton def. Salina Aranda 6-1, 6-4
Doubles:
1. Mariaryeni Gutierrez/Maria Gutierrez def. Gabriela Blaskovicova/Ashley Pilsbury 8-6
2. Stephanie LaFortune/Monique Burton def. Salina Aranda/Manijee Ashrafi 9-7
3. Manami Kuroda/Carla Nava def. Veronica Cardenas/Olga Elkin 8-5
