Loyola fell to No. 17 Middle Georgia 5-2 in the first match of the day, followed by a 5-0 victory for the Wolf Pack over Blue Mountain College.
MOBILE, Ala. - The Loyola University New Orleans women's tennis team split a pair of matches on the final day of the SSAC Roundup tournament in Mobile on Saturday.
The Wolf Pack (3-4, 2-2) defeated Blue Mountain College 5-0 after losing 5-2 to No. 17 Middle Georgia State.
"We were very close to having some good results against ranked opponents this weekend," said head coach Kyle Russell regarding the matches against Middle Georgia and Martin Methodist, who received votes in the latest NAIA Coaches poll.
"Arianna Pepper (SO/Arequipa, Peru) had a good weekend," said Russell, "not losing a match and playing some good tennis including wins in both singles and doubles against nationally ranked Middle Georgia State."
The freshman duo of Pepper and Manuela Alban (FR/Quito, Ecuador ) kicked off today's action by scoring the first point of the match against the Knights with an 8-3 victory on court two doubles. The Knights, however, picked up the points on the other two courts to take a 2-1 lead into singles.
Pepper then tied the match at 2-2 after picking up the first point in singles with her 6-1, 6-0 victory on court three.
From then on, however, Middle Georgia controlled the match, as they notched victories on courts one, five, and six to pull out the 5-2 victory.
To close out the day, the Wolf Pack came back strong in the next match, defeating Blue Mountain College 5-0.
Alban teamed up with Koral Martinez (JR/Lajas, Puerto Rico) in doubles against the Lady Toppers, scoring the first point for the Pack with an 8-1 victory on court one. The duo of Gabrielle Terranova (FR/Metairie, La.) and Tori Sutherland (SO/Kenner, La.) were next, blanking the Lady Toppers 8-0 on court three. Then the team of Nadja Ochsner (SO/Stein, Switzerland) and Margaret Adams (JR/Fairhope, Ala.) won a close one on court two, 9-8 to give the Pack a 3-0 lead heading into singles play.
Needing just two points to seal the victory, Martinez picked up the first on court one, not dropping a game on the way to a 6-0, 6-0 victory. Alban got the other point, clinching the match for the Wolf Pack with a 6-1, 6-1 win on court two.
"I think as a team we played very well in spots but just need to stay focused for longer stretches," said Russell. "We still haven't put it all together as a team but I can see it on the horizon. We'll keep working until we do."
The Wolf Pack hit the road next Saturday, Feb. 24, for a doubleheader in Alexandria, La. The first match is scheduled to start at 12 p.m. against the No. 9-ranked LSU-Alexandria, followed by a match against LSU-Shreveport at 3 p.m.
You can keep up with the Pack by following Wolf Pack Athletics on Facebook at Facebook.com/LoyolaWolfPack, Twitter and Instagram @LoyolaWolfPack, and by checking out our website at LoyolaWolfPack.com.
Match One
Loyola - 2
Middle Georgia - 5
Doubles
1. Preeti Gokhale/Franziska Nobis (MG) def. Koral Martinez/Nadja Ochsner (LOYNO) 8-5
2. Manuela Alban/Arianna Pepper (LOYNO) def. Lara Persiani/Paola Beneyto Moller (MG) 8-3
3. Jacqueline Heer/Andjela Rajovic (MG) def. Gabrielle Terranova/Miranda Cano (SO/Weston, Fla.) (LOYNO) 8-3
Order of finish: 2, 3, 1
Singles
1. Preeti Gokhale (MG) def. Koral Martinez (LOYNO) 6-4, 6-2
2. Manuela Alban (LOYNO) vs Andjela Rajovic (MG) 6-2, 5-7, 1-0, unfinished
3. Arianna Pepper (LOYNO) def. Franziska Nobis (MG) 6-1, 6-0
4. Nadja Ochsner (LOYNO) vs. Jacqueline Heer (MG) 6-2, 4-6, 1-1, unfinished
5. Lara Persiani (MG) def. Gabrielle Terranova (LOYNO) 6-2, 6-1
6. Laura Cocoma (MG) def. Miranda Cano (LOYNO) 6-1, 6-2
Order of finish: 3, 5, 6, 1
Match Two
Loyola - 5
Blue Mountain - 0
Doubles
1. Koral Martinez/Manuela Alban (LOYNO) def. Piper Johnson/Attie Finley (BMC) 8-1
2. Nadja Ochsner/Margaret Adams (LOYNO) def. Andria Barnes/Mattie Mills (BMC) 9-8 (7)
3. Gabrielle Terranova/Tori Sutherland (LOYNO) def. Emily Standard/Maegan Trexler (BMC) 8-0
Order of finish: 1, 3, 2
Singles
1. Koral Martinez (LOYNO) def. Mattie Mills (BMC) 6-0, 6-0
2. Manuela Alban (LOYNO) def. Andria Barnes (BMC) 6-1, 6-1
3. Gabrielle Terranova (LOYNO) vs. Piper Johnson (BMC) 6-0, 3-1, unfinished
4. Miranda Cano (LOYNO) vs. Atti Finley (BMC) 5-4, unfinished
5. Margaret Adams (LOYNO) vs. Maegan Trexler (BMC) 6-2, unfinished
6. Isabel Junquiera (LOYNO) vs. Meredith Murphy (BMC) 1-4, unfinished
Order of finish: 1, 2
