Tulane University
Denver
Women's Tennis Falls To Denver Pioneers, 5-2
Feb 14, 2011 | Women's Tennis
Feb. 13, 2011
DENVER, Colo. - Juniors Lindsay Dvorak and Mariam Kurdadze each posted singles victories, but it was not enough as the Tulane University women's tennis team dropped a 5-2 decision to the University of Denver Sunday afternoon at Pinehurst Country Club.
Dvorak rolled past Natalie Dunn on Court 4 - 6-2, 6-3 - while Kurdadze bounced back from an opening-set 6-4 defeat to down Sophia Berner the next two sets 6-1, 6-4. With the loss, Tulane falls to 2-4 on the year. Denver, meanwhile, improved to 3-3 overall.
The Green Wave got off to a rough start as the three doubles teams lost by a combined score of 24-10. The Pioneer pair of Natalie Dunn and Caroline Schnell notched the home-standing team's first win of the day with an 8-3 victory over sophomore Hila Elster and junior Elizabeth Hamlin on Court 3 while DU's Emma Isberg and Elena Najera defeated Dvorak and sophomore Emma Helistén on Court 2 by the exact same score to clinch the doubles point.
Berner and Steffi Rath completed the Denver doubles sweep with an 8-4 win over Kurdadze and sophomore Emma Levy at the No. 1 matchup.
Isberg put the Pioneers on top 2-0 with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Hamlin in No. 3 singles action, but Dvorak and Kurdadze's respective wins knotted the match at 2-2. From there, however, Najera sandwiched 6-3 and 6-4 wins around a 4-6 second-set defeat to Levy to give Denver a 3-2 advantage, and Schnell scored the match's deciding victory with a 6-3, 7-5 decision over Elster on Court 5. Rath closed out the match with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Helistén in No. 6 singles play.
The Green Wave return to action on Wednesday, Feb. 16, when Tulane plays host to LSU at 2 p.m. at the Goldring Tennis Center. Admission to all home Tulane tennis matches is free.
DENVER (3-3) DEFEATS TULANE (2-4): 5-2
SINGLES
No. 1: Mariam Kurdadze (Tulane) def. Sophia Bergner (Denver) - 4-6, 6-1, 6-4
No. 2: Elena Najera (Denver) def. Emma Levy (Tulane) - 6-3, 4-6, 6-4
No. 3: Emma Isberg (Denver) def. Elizabeth Hamlin (Tulane) - 6-2, 6-2
No. 4: Lindsay Dvorak (Tulane) def. Natalie Dunn (Denver) - 6-2, 6-3
No. 5: Caroline Schnell (Denver) def. Hila Elster (Tulane) - 6-3, 7-5
No. 6: Steffi Rath (Denver) def. Emma Helistén (Tulane) - 6-4, 6-3
DOUBLES
No. 1: Sophia Bergner / Steffi Rath (Denver) def. Mariam Kurdadze / Emma Levy (Tulane) - 8-4
No. 2: Emma Isberg / Elena Najera (Denver) def. Lindsay Dvorak / Emma Helistén (Tulane) - 8-3
No. 3: Natalie Dunn / Caroline Schnell (Denver) def. Hila Elster / Elizabeth Hamlin (Tulane) - 8-3
Players Mentioned
