Kansas Dominates Oklahoma, 4-1, for Fourth-Straight Win

#33 Kansas 4, Oklahoma 1
Jayhawk Tennis Center
April 22, 2016
Doubles
No. 1 –  Lily Miyazaki/Emma Devine (OU) def. Nina Khmelnitckaia/Janet Koch (KU) def. 6-2
No. 2 – Maria Jose Cardona/Summer Collins (KU) vs. Simran Sethi/Christie Brigante (OU) 7-5 
No. 3 – Smith Hinton/Anastasiya Rychagova (KU) def. Malene Stripp/Mimi Fotopoulos (OU) 6-0
Order of Finish: 3.1.2
Singles
No. 1 – Lily Miyazaki (OU) def. Anastasiya Rychagova (KU) 6-3, 6-3
No. 2 –  Smith Hinton (KU) vs. Emma Devine (OU) 6-4, 1-6, 0-1 unfinished
No. 3 – Janet Koch (KU) def. Mimi Fotopoulos (OU) 6-3, 6-2
No. 4 – Nina Khmelnitckaia (KU) def. Simran Sethi (OU) 6-2, 6-4
No. 5 – Maria Jose Cardona (KU) def. Christie Brigante (OU) 6-4, 6-4
No. 6 – Summer Collins (KU) vs. Malene Stripp (OU) 6-3, 3-5 unfinished
Order of Finish: 1,5,3,4

LAWRENCE, Kan. — Kansas women’s tennis put its fourth-straight mark in the win column as the Jayhawks topped Oklahoma, 4-1, at the Jayhawk Tennis Center Friday afternoon. The win moved KU to 16-5 overall and 6-2 in Big 12 Conference play. KU’s six league wins mark its highest win total since picking up six conference victories in 2008. Kansas, who is currently ranked No. 33 in the latest ITA rankings, picked up its second-consecutive win over the Sooners, its first time to put together back-to-back victories over OU since 2008-09. 

“What I love is not that we won–it’s how we won,” said Kansas head coach Todd Chapman. “We were aggressive, we took it to them, we were playing to win–so that was key. We’ve been very, very good with the doubles this year. With a young team, that definitely helps us going into singles play and gives us a confidence boost when we secure that doubles point.”

Kansas did pick up the all-important doubles point to open the contest. KU’s tandem composed of freshman Anastasiya Rychagova and sophomore Smith Hinton raced out to a 6-0 win over OU’s Malene Stripp and Mimi Fotopoulos on court three. Oklahoma came right back as Lily Miyazaki and 
Emma Devine topped KU’s freshmen duo of Nina Khmelnitckaia and Janet Koch, 6-3, on court one. With the doubles point hanging in the balance, KU’s senior Maria Jose Cardona and sophomore Summer Collins battled back from down 4-3 to OU’s Simran Sethi and Christie Brigante for a 7-5 win on court two, securing a 1-0 lead for KU.

Up a point in the match, Kansas used the momentum from doubles play to start strong in singles, winning the first set on 5-of-6 courts. Oklahoma scored its lone point of the match on court one as Miyazaki topped Rychagova, 6-3, 6-3, on court one. 

KU then kicked it into high gear as the Jayhawks reeled off three-straight singles wins to claim the match over the Sooners. Cardona put KU up 2-1 with her 6-4, 6-4 win over Brigante on court five. Next up, Koch defeated OU’s Fotopoulos in straight-sets, 6-3, 6-2, on court three. Finishing off Oklahoma was Khmelnitckaia with her 6-2, 6-4 win over Sethi on court four. 

“This win was huge, there’ s a lot to play for and a lot that we’re excited for,” said Chapman. “Today was big for conference standings heading into the tournament next week. This win puts us in a position to hopefully get a seed that we like. We believe we’re in a good spot looking ahead to the NCAA championships.”

UP NEXT
Kansas will hold Senior Day on Sunday, April 24, when it concludes the regular season by hosting Oklahoma State at 12 p.m. The Jayhawks will honor senior Maria Jose Cardona following the match. Kansas will then compete in the Big 12 Championships in Stillwater, Oklahoma, beginning on April 28.

KUAthletics.com: The official online source for Kansas Athletics, Williams Education Fund contributions, tickets, merchandise, multimedia, photos and much, much more.