BEAUMONT, Texas – The Lamar University women's tennis team dropped a heartbreaker to Abilene Christian, 4-3, Sunday at the Thompson Family Tennis Center. The loss drops LU to 9-9 (.500) on the season and 4-5 (.444) in Southland Conference play with two matches remaining.
 
"Losing the doubles point was very disappointing," said LU head coach David Wong. "We were in a position to win it and we didn't get it done. We knew coming in that point would be huge. In singles, we struggled to keep the ball in play on several courts. I thought we got better at the end of the match but by that time it was too late. I give credit to ACU, they fought hard and played really well today."  
 
The Cardinals picked up the first victory of the day with the team of junior Katya Lapayeva and freshman Luciana Di Laura defeated ACU's Kaysie Hermsdorf and Lucile Pothier, 6-3, at No. 2 doubles. The Wildcats rallied for a 6-4 victory at No. 3 but it appeared that LU was headed for a victory on court 1 to take the point. The Wildcats' Erin Walker and Whitney Williams rallied to win the match stealing the point and the momentum for the Red and White.
 
Lapayeva answered back for the Cardinals with her straight-set win over Walker, 7-6 (8-6), 6-1, at No. 1 singles, but the Wildcats reclaimed the lead moments later when Williams defeated Stephanie Marchena at the No. 5 position, 6-3, 6-4.
 
The Wildcats would clinch the overall team victory with the next two decisions as they walked off the court with victories at No. 4 and 3 singles, respectively. The losses hurt as the Cardinals rebounded with a win at the No. 2 spot on the ladder. Sophomore Andrea Ivanovic overcame an opening set loss to defeat Hermsdorf, 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7-5).
 
The Cardinals closed out the match with a three-set win on court 6. Di Laura outlasted the Wildcats' Jordan Henry for a thrilling three-set victory, 6-4, 6-7 (2-7), 10-7, to close out the scoring.
 
The Cardinals return to action Saturday when they travel to Natchitoches to take on Northwestern State. The match against the Demons is slated to begin at 11 a.m.
   
Singles
1. Katya Lapayeva (LU) def. Erin Walker (ACU), 7-6 (8-6), 6-1
2. Andrea Ivanovic (LU) def. Kaysie Hermsdorf (ACU), 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7-5)
3. Lucile Pothier (ACU) def. Anna Spengler (LU), 6-3, 6-3
4. Nada Marjanovic (ACU) def. Talisa Merchiers (LU), 6-3, 6-4
5. Whitney Williams (ACU) def. Stephanie Marchena (LU), 6-3, 6-4
6. Luciana Di Laura (LU) def. Jordan Henry (ACU), 6-4, 6-7 (2-7), 10-7
 
Doubles
1.  Walker/Williams (ACU) def. Spengler/Ivanovic (LU), 7-5
2. Lapayeva/Di Laura (LU) def. Hermsdorf/Pothier (ACU), 6-3
3. Marjanovic/Crook (ACU) def. Marchena/Merchiers (LU), 6-4