NEW ORLEANS – Karolina Snita defeated University of South Alabama senior Laura Matuskova (Bratislava, Slovakia) in three sets to give Louisiana-Monroe a 4-3 comeback victory in the final of the Sun Belt Conference Championships Sunday at the City Park/Pepsi Tennis Center.

This ends a 13-match win streak for USA. The Jaguars fell to 21-5 on the season, while the Warhawks improved to 16-1. ULM will earn the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

"That was a good match," said USA head coach Jaco Keyser. "That was two really good teams going at it. It's a pity someone had to lose. Today it was us, but it was a heck of a comeback they made today. It doesn't happen very often, but they did it, and credit to them."

The Jags took a 3-1 lead after senior Laura Valkova (Piestany, Slovakia) dropped Tiffany Mylonas 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 on court No. 2 in singles. ULM bounced back when sophomore Alina Zolotareva (Barnaul, Russia) fell to Madalina Grigoriu 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 at No. 6, and Petra Horakova tied it with a 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 win over sophomore Patricia Martins (Lisbon, Portugal) on court No. 4. 

Snita clinched it for ULM by defeating Matuskova 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 at No. 5.

"It might have been a little bit of confidence (that decided the match)," Keyser said. "We had won 13 in a row and now they've won 15 in a row, and it just seemed like at the end of the matches, in crucial situations, they just executed a little better than us."

USA jumped out to an early 1-0 lead by taking the doubles point. Matuskova and Zolotareva bested Mylonas and Launa Stanciu 6-2 on court No. 3, and senior Monica Mitta (Fairhope, Ala.) and Stiteler secured the point with a 6-3 win over Grigoriu and Snita at No. 2.

Patricia Villar tied it by dropping Mitta 6-3, 6-0 on court No. 3, but sophomore Alexandria Stiteler (Bradenton, Fla.) rallied to defeat Stefana Andrei 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 at No. 1 to give the Jags a 2-1 lead.

 "We had a great season," said Keyser. "We had 20 wins, and that's a benchmark for being good, and we've done it three years in a row. It's a tough loss because everyone is invested in it and it hurts a little more, but we can use that for motivation next year."

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).

Join the Baseline Club, the tennis-specific support club of the Jaguar Athletic Fund. All donations to the Baseline Club go directly to support the South Alabama men's and women's tennis programs. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/baselineclub

—USA—