SAN ANGELO, TEXAS – #27 UT Tyler women's tennis is officially all alone at the top of the Lone Star Conference after a 5-2 win on the road over #25 Angelo State on Saturday.
The Patriots handed the Rambelles their first LSC loss and first loss of the season overall in elite fashion after a lengthy rain delay in San Angelo.
They would begin that strong day of play in doubles, with the pair of
Hailey Zhang and
Carla Rodier delivering a 6-4 win in line #3.
Paula Castellanos and
Maria Antonio Ortega added their own 6-4 win in line #2, and
Yona Bancarel and
Natalia Gorzny finished off the sweep in doubles with a 6-3 win in line #1.
That sweep gave them a 1-0 lead heading into singles, and Gorzny would double the lead with a strong performance in the #2 line. After a 5-5 start to the first set, she won two straight games to take the set and promptly won the first five games of set two on her way to finalizing a 7-5, 6-1 win.
Just a few minutes later, Bancarel would put the touches on her own straight sets win, putting the Patriots on the doorstep of a win. Bancarel raced out to a 4-0 lead in set one to coast to a 6-1 win and then battled back from a 3-4 deficit in set two to win three straight games and earn the 6-3 win.
The Patriots kept the wheels turning in the #6 line, with Castellanos well on her way to earning the fourth point for the Patriots and the win. She would fall behind 2-3 in the opening set, but won four of the next five games to take a 6-4 win. She followed that up with a lights-out effort in set two, winning it 6-0 to put the Patriots ahead 4-0 and secure the win.
UT Tyler added one more win, this one coming in the #5 line as Rodier delivered another straight sets win. After being tied 1-1 in the first, she ripped off five straight game wins to take a one set lead. She fell behind 0-3 to start set two, but won six of the next seven games to pull off the comeback and earn the fifth point.
Angelo State would win both lines #3 and #4, but the Patriots had the match in hand to move to 7-1 in LSC play.
UT Tyler will next take on UT Dallas on Tuesday afternoon in their penultimate match of the regular season. That will take place on the road beginning at 2 p.m.
