Bucs win four sets in loss to SEC foe

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Jan. 20, 2023) – After winning its first two matches of the spring season last week, ETSU had its first setback on Friday with a 7-0 loss to Kentucky in Lexington.

Box Score

Despite the loss, four Buccaneers won their opening sets in singles action. Playing the top flight against Elizabeth Stevens, Laylo Bakhodirova (Tashkent, Uzbekistan) won her first set before falling 6-4, 2-6, 1-6.

Joining Bakhodivora with first set wins were Maria Fernanda Carvajal (Queretaro, Mexico), Daniela Rivera (Maturin, Venezuela) and Ralitsa Alexandrova (Sofia, Bulgaria) in the No. 3-5 spots, respectively. Kentucky went on to win all three matches in close fashion. 

Carvajal won her first set 6-3 against Carlota Molina, but Molina came back with a heartbreaking 7-6 win after a 7-3 tiebreaker kept the match alive in the second set, setting up a third set win for Molina. Meanwhile, Rivera was locked in a competitive battle at the No. 4 spot with a 6-4 win followed by losses of 6-3 and 6-4 in the final two sets.

Alexandrova’s match finished with a 6-2, 4-6, 1-0 final with the final frame with a 10-5 tiebreaker. Yunuen Elizarraras (Cuernavaca, Mexico) was close in her first set at the No. 6 spot, falling 7-5, 1-6 to UK’s Zoe Hammond.

Mariya Shumeika (Minsk, Belarus) had a tough task in No. 2 singles, facing No. 67 Florencia Urrutia and falling 6-2, 6-3. The latest ITA ratings had Urrutia as one of the Top 70 players nationwide at the end of the fall season.

Kentucky took No. 2 and No. 3 doubles to clinch the initial point. In No. 1 singles, Bakhodirova and Shumeika trailed 4-3 before their match finished incomplete.

The Bucs will now head over to Oxford, Miss. for another SEC opponent as they play Ole Miss on Sunday, Jan. 22 at noon.

For more information on Buccaneer women’s tennis, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the women’s tennis page.