Complete Results
SAN ANTONIO, Texas – University of South Alabama senior Emily Newton (Dothan, Ala.) earned two victories to lead the Jaguars to a 5-2 win over Texas-San Antonio on Friday at the UTSA Tennis Center.
USA improved to 2-0 in their spring campaign, while UTSA fell to 3-2 overall.
"This was a tough battle today," said USA head coach Jaco Keyser. "It was definitely a grind-it-out win, but we're very excited that we fully engaged and figured out a way to win."
Newton picked up her second singles win of the season with a 6-1, 6-4 victory over Alena Shichkova at the No. 2 spot. Newton teamed up with junior Michaela Meszarosova (Bratislava, Slovakia) to clinch the doubles point when they edged Daniela Garcia-Diaz and Miriam Rosell Canudas at No. 2.
In addition to Newton's win, the Jags picked up singles wins at the bottom three spots to secure the win over the Roadrunners. Sophomore Laura Matuskova (Bratislava, Slovakia) put South Alabama up 2-0 when she dropped Lina Hallgren 6-1, 6-4 in the No. 5 flight.
After Newton's victory, Canudas outlasted sophomore Monica Mitta (Fairhope, Ala.) 6-3, 4-6, 6-1 on the No. 3 court. Jacobea Junger handed sophomore Laura Valkova (Piestany, Slovakia) her first-ever dual match loss when she defeated her 6-7, 6-2, 6-3 at the No. 1 spot.
Senior Mary Angela Martin (Mobile, Ala.) clinched the match for USA when she topped Nicole Karaklis 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 in the No. 4 flight, and junior Cinta Maria Papke (Flein, Germany) picked up the last point for South Alabama with a 2-6, 7-6, 7-5 win over Irene Gandara Gonzalez at No. 6.
In doubles action, Papke and junior Paula Sanchez (Bogata, Colombia) put the Jags on the board with a 6-2 victory over Hallgren and Karaklis on the No. 3 court. Junger and Shichkova defeated Mitta and Valkova 6-4 at No. 1.
"The good teams stay the course and give themselves a chance to win," said Keyser. "I thought we definitely need to do certain things better in order to produce higher-quality tennis, but the sky is the limit when we compete as hard as we did today."
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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