May 11, 2007

Box Score

Nashville, Tenn. - The University of Tulsa's women's tennis team (21-5) saw one of the best seasons in school come to an end at the hands of Tennessee with a 4-0 loss on Friday in Nashville, Tenn., in the first round of the 2007 NCAA Division I Women's Tennis Tournament.

The No. 21 ranked Lady Vols put the Hurricane down 1-0 early after winning the doubles point with victories at the two and three positions. Kindsay Grimes and Carla Zabaleta had jumped to a 7-6 lead at the number one doubles, but a pair of 8-4 losses doomed TU to a 1-0 deficit.

Things didn't get any easier in singles competition for the Golden Hurricane.

TU fell behind 2-0 after Marta Marcinkowska dropped a 6-1, 6-0 decision to Zsofia Zubor on court six, and that deficit moved to 3-0 when No. 26 Blakely Griffith grabbed a 6-0, 6-1 win over Grimes at the one position.

The Lady Vols got the clincher when Samantha Orlin pulled off a feat that only one other person had pulled off this spring and that was hand Agostina Santoro a loss. Orlin took a 6-4, 6-2 decision that sent Tulsa home after the first round of competition.

The loss ends one of the most successful seasons the women's program has ever had, winning its first ever conference championship and finishing with a 21-5 record ranked No. 42 in the nation.