BEAUMONT, Texas – Lamar University dropped only one match in an impressive 6-1 victory over Omaha Tuesday afternoon from the Thompson Family Tennis Center. The win marked the Cardinals (10-4) fourth consecutive, and fifth in its last six matches.
The Cardinals, who are 3-0 on the current homestand, have improved their 2017 home record to a perfect 7-0.
"I was very proud of our team today," said LU head coach
David Wong. "They played the way we wanted them to on just about every court. Hopefully, we can put forth this same effort in our next match. Friday's match will be our final contest before we return to Southland Conference play.
"You have to give credit to Omaha. Making the trip out here is no easy task, and they came ready to play. They fought hard to the very last point," added Wong.
LU fans who showed up for Tuesday's match didn't have to wait long to find out how the Cardinals would play in the midseason, non-conference match. Big Red cruised through the doubles competition winning two of the three matches by a score of 6-2. The closest match came on court three where the team of
Jasmin Buchta and
Hanna Elfving posted a 6-4 victory over the Mavericks' Kylie Boyer and Kenzie Hill.
Elfving kept Cardinals run alive to start singles play. The senior posted a 6-1 victory in the opening set and quickly returned to court to record an identical score in the second to defeat Hill. Elfving was one of five Cardinals to win in straight sets Tuesday as LU took all six of the opening sets in singles.
Classmate
Sanja Jolic added to the Cards' lead when she recorded a 6-2, 6-3 decision over the Mavs' Emily Behling on court four. Senior
Katya Lapayeva, the reigning Southland Player of the Week, locked up the team victory Tuesday with her, 6-1, 6-2 decision, over Michelle Lo at No. 1 singles.
Following Lapayeva's victory, the Cardinals added wins from senior
Talisa Merchiers (No. 5 singles) and Buchta (No. 3 singles) to close out their half of the scoring. Omaha finally got on the scoreboard in the final match of the day, but it took a three-setter on court two to do so.
The Cardinals return to action Thursday when the host Laredo College. The match against Laredo is slated to begin at 10 a.m. from the Thompson Family Tennis Center.
-LU CARDINALS-
