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Cowgirls fall to Texas Tech on Senior Day G rant R am ir ez S ta ff R epo rt er @ G r a n t_R a m ir ez 3
Facing the wall, junior Katarina Stresnakova jumped side to side, listening to the crowd roar behind her. But in an instant, Michael and Anne Greenwood Tennis Center went silent. Texas Tech spoiled the Oklahoma State women’s tennis team’s Senior Day festivities with a 4-1 victory Sunday. Down 5-4 in her second set, facing match point, Stresnakova was trying to keep the No. 11 Cowgirls alive. She failed to complete the comeback attempt, losing in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4.
MONDAY, APRIL 16, 2018
Osu vs. Kansas When: 5 p.m. Friday Where: Lawrence, Kansas
“Today, Texas Tech played very well, and they capitalized on the points that were there for them,” OSU coach Chris Young said. “We got down and just couldn’t dig ourselves out of the hole.” No. 13 Texas Tech’s Katelyn Jackson double bageled sophomore Saralyn Dyer, putting OSU in a quick 2-0 deficit. After not losing a dual match the entire season before this weekend, junior Marina Guinart lost her second singles
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Vladica Babic celebrates after beating Gabriela Talaba in straight sets at Greenwood Tennis Center on Senior Day.
match in a row, falling 6-2, 6-0. Young said getting quality play out of Guinart will be essential as OSU gets into the home stretch of its season. “I think (Guinart’s) movement wasn’t as good, just
didn’t go for her shots in the same way and just didn’t bring the same energy that she’s used to bringing,” Young said. “We’re going to need her to be back to her old self next weekend.”
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The lone point for the Cowgirls (16-3 overall, 5-2 Big 12) came from senior Vladica Babic, who continued her strong play as of late, defeating No. 17 Gabriela Talaba 6-3, 6-3 on Court 1 in an intense contest. After her final point, Babic threw her hands up in the air with a wide smile on her face. The victory allowed her to go out of potentially her last home match on a high note despite the Cowgirls’ loss. Babic and fellow senior Megan McCray do have a chance to play again at Greenwood Tennis Center. If OSU enters the NCAA Tournament as a top-16 seed, it will host the first two rounds.
OSU has a couple of away matches left before the Big 12 tournament. The Cowgirls will hit the road for matches against Kansas and Kansas State next weekend, looking to bounce back from their third loss of the season. “We just don’t have much margin for error right now with everything that’s going on,” Young said. “Overall, I thought the girls competed well, and it just wasn’t enough today.”
Grant Ramirez is a sports media freshman from Grapevine, Texas. He can be reached at grant.ramerez@okstate.edu.
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