Jacksonville State results
Jackson State results

MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama women's tennis team ran its win streak to seven with victories over Jacksonville State and Jackson State Thursday at the Mobile Tennis Center.

The Jaguars, who improved to 7-1 on the year, defeated Jacksonville State 5-0 and Jackson State 4-2.

"It was nice to get two more wins on the books while getting some much needed match situation repetitions under the belt," USA head coach Jaco Keyser said. "The quality of play wasn't exactly where we need it to be, but I am super excited at how we are responding within stressful situations and how we are responding when things don't go our way."

In the opener, the Jags quickly took the doubles point over the Gamecocks, thanks to a walkover win at No. 3 and a 6-0 victory at No. 1.

USA picked up a second point with another walkover at No. 6, then went up 3-0 shortly thereafter when senior Laura Valkova (Piestany, Slovakia) defeated Claudia Marsala 3-2 (ret.) on court 2.

Senior Laura Matuskova (Bratislava, Slovakia) dropped just one game in clinching the match when she downed Diana Monsalve 6-1, 6-0 at No. 3. Sophomore Patricia Martins (Lisbon, Portugal) added the final point with a 6-0, 6-1 win at No. 4 over Alba Conejero.

The second match started similarly to the first, as South Alabama took No. 3 doubles against Jackson State via walkover, then Martins and Valkova earned the doubles point with a 6-1 win on court 1.

In singles, Martins blanked Ariel Dickson 6-0, 6-0 at No. 3, and sophomore Alina Zolotareva (Barnaul, Russia) topped Nina Zhang 6-1, 6-3 at No. 4.

The Tigers pulled back a point on court 1 after Tyler Smith defeated Valkova 6-3, 6-4, but Matuskova ended the match in three sets on court 2, 6-3, 1-6, 6-4.

Daria Butorina picked up JSU's second point of the day with a 6-4, 4-6, (10-8) victory at No. 5 over freshman Leslie Soto Bustamante.

"Our execution will improve if we keep grinding mentally as hard as we did today," Keyser said. "I'm looking forward to another opportunity tomorrow to get better and work towards our ultimate goal of maximizing our potential as individuals and ultimately as a team."

The Jaguars return to the courts tomorrow with a 2:30 match against Southeastern Louisiana.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

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