Colorado
Tulane
CU Edged By Tulane Despite Strong Singles Play
February 20, 2016 | Tennis
NEW ORLEANS - Colorado split its singles matches with Tulane, but the Green Wave won the doubles point to edge the Buffaloes 4-3 on Saturday in New Orleans. It was the first outdoor match of the season for CU.
Tulane took the doubles point after a 6-0 win at No. 2 and 6-2 win at No. 1.
The Buffaloes regrouped after the early setback and responded with strong play in singles. Alex Aiello tied the match at 1-1 as she cruised to a 6-2, 6-4 win over Jacqui Katz at No. 5 singles.
"Alex came out and played well and played within herself," said head coach Nicole Kenneally. "She made smart choices and pressured when she needed to, and regrouped when she got off-course. If she continues to play like that she's going to pick up a lot of wins in the second half of the season."
After a loss at No. 6 singles, it was Nuria Ormeño Ruiz's turn to even up the overall score at 2-2. Ormeño Ruiz defeated Naz Karagoz 6-3, 7-6 (4) at the No. 2 position. It was the 55th career singles win for the junior from Barcelona, Spain.
Tina Bokhua earned the final win for the Buffs at No. 1 singles, rallying 4-6, 7-6 (7), 10-5 against Ipek Birol. It was her eighth consecutive win overall and seventh consecutive at the No. 1 position. Her eight-match winning streak is the longest since Julyette Steur won eight in a row last season and her streak at No. 1 singles is the longest since Monica Milewski won eight straight at the top spot in 2007. It was also the 25th career singles victory for the sophomore from Moscow, Russia.
Annabelle Andrinopoulos fell in three sets at No. 4 singles, nearly pulling off a wild comeback. She lost the first set 6-1 and fell behind 4-1 in the second before rallying to win a tiebreaker in the second. She couldn't carry the momentum to the third set, however, and lost 6-2 to Elena Muller.
Jeannez Daniel and Vitaliya Alkhovik both lost in straight sets for the Buffs.
"Today was our first match outside. We definitely have some elements we have to overcome with that. We came out slow in doubles. We have to make sure that energy is up from the get-go. In the singles we came out and we fought and we battled. As we talked about after the match, each day you have to review what you need to improve on and what you did well and move on from that. Tomorrow we're playing a great team in Ole Miss. A top-20 match is what you want to see and we will see that in the Pac-12. The more we take from today and use it tomorrow, the more that will benefit us."
CU (4-5) will face 18th-ranked Ole Miss (5-0) on Sunday in New Orleans at 11 a.m. CT/10 a.m. MT.
Tulane 4, Colorado 3
Feb 20, 2016 at New Orleans, La.
| Singles competition |
| 1. #42 Bokhua, Tina (COLO) def. Birol, Ipek (TUL) 4-6, 7-6 (9-7), 1-0 (10-5) |
| 2. #115 Ormeño Ruiz, Nuria (COLO) def. Karagoz, Naz (TUL) 6-3, 7-6 (7-4) |
| 3. Klier, Kyla (TUL) def. Daniel, Jeannez (COLO) 6-3, 6-4 |
| 4. Muller, Elena (TUL) def. Andrinopoulos, Annabelle (COLO) 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 |
| 5. Aiello, Alex (COLO) def. Katz, Jacqui (TUL) 6-2, 6-4 |
| 6. Maltby, Meredith (TUL) def. Alkhovik, Vitaliya (COLO) 6-2, 6-1 |
| Doubles competition |
| 1. Birol, Ipek/Atkinson, Sade (TUL) def. Bokhua, Tina/Ormeño Ruiz, Nuria (COLO) 6-2 |
| 2. Karagoz, Naz/Muller, Elena (TUL) def. Daniel, Jeannez/Andrinopoulos, Annabelle (COLO) 6-0 |
| 3. Katz, Jacqui/Klier, Kyla (TUL) vs. Aiello, Alex/Beck, Brigitte (COLO) unfinished |
| Match Notes |
| Colorado 4-5 |
| Tulane 2-6 |
| Order of finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (5,6,2,3,4,1) |
| T-3:30 |
Players Mentioned
