OSU women’s tennis defeated No. 36 SMU to advance to the NCAA Tournament’s Super Regional.
Coach Chris Young said consistency and routine have led the undefeated Cowgirls to success. His 4-0 victory over SMU (14-11) was no exception.
“We know what we’re doing here,” Young said. “Our program has standards. We’re doing the same thing here, and that consistency has allowed him to win five Sweet 16 awards in the last eight years. .”
The Cowgirls started the match with another doubles points win.
Kristina Novak and Safiyah Carrington quickly got it done with a 6-0 win over Caroline McGinley and Millie Skelton on court three.
Ayumi Miyamoto and Raquel Gonzalez took the doubles point with a 6-2 win over Hadley Doyle and Drew Morris.
After this quick success and confidence boost, the Cowgirls certainly completed the sweep.
Lucia Pere said throughout Miyamoto’s five years at OSU, she has been a good role model for the team and the team can always rely on her to give them points. On Sunday, she did just that.
Miyamoto remained reliable and quickly defeated Skelton 6-0, 6-1 on Court 5.
Anju Obey Kajuru found his rhythm after a tough 7-5 first set and defeated Morris 6-1 in the second set for the win on court two.
Sophomore Paire defeated Doyle 6-3, 6-0 to secure the Cowgirls’ victory and their third postseason win of the season.
“She’s playing great, and that’s what we need,” Young said. “For her to play as strong as she did there, it just gives our lineup a little more punch.”
Anastasia Komar, Carrington and Novak all won the first set but were unable to finish the rest of the match.
Young said doubles points will be key to the team’s continued success. He also said he wants fans to know that even though his team looks easy, it takes effort to make it to the Sweet 16.
The Cowgirls continue their NCAA Tournament journey Saturday at 3 p.m. at home against the No. 16 Tennessee Volunteers (20-7) in a super regional matchup.
“We hope more people will come next weekend,” Per said. “We love the people who come here to support us. That’s very important to us.”
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