TULSA, Okla. (September 23, 2022) – Opening up their fall schedule at the Tulsa Invite hosted by the Golden Hurricane on Friday, the Northern Arizona women's tennis team split its singles play against the Arkansas Razorbacks while taking on the host in doubles.
An All-Big Sky First Team honoree last season, junior
Sofia Markova earned a 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 victory against junior Indianna Spink. Ranked as high as No. 38 in the ITA National Singles Rankings during the 2020-21 season, Spink opened the 2021-22 rankings at No. 26 and finished 5-4 in the SEC last season primarily playing No. 2 or No. 3 in the lineup.
Ana Karen Guadiana Campos and
Patrycja Niewiadomska also earned victories in singles play over Arkansas. Guadiana Campos defeated Morgan McCarthy 6-2, 6-3 while Niewiadomska earned a 6-2, 6-0 victory in her singles match.
Senior
Elinor Beazley battled through three sets against junior Lenka Stara, falling in a first-set tiebreaker 7-6 before winning 6-2 in the second to force a deciding set. Stara emerged with the win, 6-2, in the third set as Beazley fell to Stara, who finished 17-7 in singles last season.
Laura Duhl also dropped a three-set match with freshman Yuhan Liu, with a first-set 7-5 victory followed by a 6-2, 6-0 decision in the final two sets of the match.
Ava Neyestani also dropped her singles match, falling to sophomore Grace O'Donnell.
In doubles play against Tulsa, Markova and freshman
Daryna Shoshyna nearly defeated Tulsa's Amy Leather and Oleksandra Nahurska. Falling to the freshman and junior 7-6 (7-3), Beazley and Shoshyna stood out in doubles during the first of three days in the invitational. Sophomores Lily Hutchings and Ana Naranjo Martinez beat Niewiadomska and Guadiana Campos 6-3. Lastly, Beazley and Duhl fell 6-2 to senior Laia Conde Monfort and sophomore Maria Berlanga Bandera.
Play continues at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, with Northern Arizona joined by Tulsa, Arkansas, Louisiana Tech and Wichita State. Sunday's singles and doubles play will begin at 7 a.m.
