Hawkeyes Can't Weather Golden Hurricane

March 10, 2012

LINCOLN, Neb. — The University of Iowa women’s tennis team dropped a 7-0 decision to No. 30 Tulsa (10-2) on Saturday at the Nebraska Tennis Center in Lincoln, Neb. The 58th-ranked Hawkeyes are an even 5-5 (0-1 Big Ten) during dual play.

“Tulsa is very good team and we were overmatched today,” said head coach Katie Dougherty. “They did a good job of closing out tight games and not letting us get into matches. This was an important weekend for us because we saw a good level of competition, were able to play outside on Sunday and know that we’re getting better even if the scores don’t show that.”

Tulsa earned the first point of the match by winning 3-0 in doubles. UI senior Ally Majercik was in the Iowa lineup for the first time since Feb. 25. Majercik teamed with freshman Katie Zordani at the No. 3 position. The tandem fell 8-5 to Michelle Farley and Insaura Enrique.

In singles, senior Sonja Molnar fell at the No. 1 spot in a match that featured two nationally-ranked players. Tulsa’s Anastasia Erofeeva, ranked No. 82 by the ITA, defeated No. 110 Molnar, 6-4, 6-1. Molnar beat Erofeeva once during the fall, as she won a 6-4, 6-2 decision against Erofeeva at the ITA Central Regional on Oct. 23. Molnar is a team-best 7-3 in dual play.

“Playing good teams exposes our weaknesses and is making us better,” said Dougherty. “I’m confident it’s going to pay off as the season wears on. We’ll have five days of rest for those who are a little banged up and train outside down in Florida. We will look to battle again on Friday.”

The Hawkeyes play next in Orlando, Fla. Iowa will take on Central Florida on March 16 at 1:00 p.m. (CT), before facing Harvard on March 17 at 10:00 a.m. (CT).

#30 Tulsa (10-2) – 7
#58 Iowa (5-5, 0-1) – 0

Singles
1. #82 Anastasia Erofeeva (Tulsa) def. #110 Sonja Molnar (Iowa), 6-4, 6-1
2. ##67 Samantha Vickers (Tulsa) def. Shelby Talcott (Iowa), 6-2, 7-5
3. Ewa Szatkowska (Tulsa) def. Morven McCulloch (Iowa), 7-5, 6-2
4. Isaura Enrique (Tulsa) def. Katie Zordani (Iowa), 6-1, 6-0
5. Michelle Farley (Tulsa) def. Christina Harazin (Iowa), 6-1, 6-0
6. Bonny Davidson (Tulsa) def. Ellen Silver (Iowa), 6-4, 6-1

Doubles
1. Anastasia Erofeeva/Ewa Szatkowska (Tulsa) def. Sonja Molnar/Shelby Talcott (Iowa), 8-3
2. Bonny Davidson/Samantha Vickers (Tulsa) def. Morven McCulloch/Christina Harazin (Iowa), 8-0
3. Michelle Farley/Isaura Enrique (Tulsa) def. Ally Majercik/Katie Zordani (IOWA), 8-5