April 25, 2003

SAN DIEGO - Fourth-seeded BYU upset top-seed UNLV 4-2 in Friday's semifinal round of the Mountain West Conference Women's Tennis Championship on the campus of San Diego State.

The Lady Rebels, ranked 28th, lost for only the second time ever in MWC tournament play (9-2).

The defending champions fell to 16-5 overall and 7-2 vs. league opponents this season. The Cougars, who also downed UNLV indoors at Provo, Utah, back on April 5, improved to 13-10 and 7-2.

BYU began the morning earning the doubles point by winning at No. 1 and No. 3. The second match, tied at 8, was then halted.

In singles play, UNLV took the lead with two easy victories on top. Gyorgyi Zsiros won 6-1, 6-2 at No. 1 over Leeza Klempner while Paulina Janus cruised 6-3, 6-1 at No. 2 over Dominique Reynolds.

The Cougars tied things with a win at No. 5 and made it 3-2 with a 7-6, 7-6 squeaker on the fourth court. The Lady Rebels, who have battled injuries all season, were stung again when senior Amy Hadziosmanovic sprained an ankle early in the third set and eventually fell to Nicole Schnedier 6-4, 1-6, 6-4. The remaining match, on court three, was halted tied at 6-4, 4-6, 2-2.

UNLV now must hope for an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. The entire 64-team field will be announced Wednesday live on ESPNEWS.

MWC WOMEN'S TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIP

(#54) BYU 4, (#28) UNLV 2

SEMIFINALS

At SDSU Courts, San Diego

SINGLES -- (BYU EARNS THREE TEAM POINTS)
1. Gyorgyi Zsiros (UNLV) def. Leeza Klempner (BYU)       6-1, 6-22. Paulina Janus (UNLV) def. Dominique Reynolds (BYU)    6-3, 6-13. Agnieszka Abram (UNLV) vs. Olga Boulytcheva (BYU)     6-4, 4-6, 2-2 Did Not Finish4. Hadley MacFarlane (BYU) def. Tracie Chong (UNLV)      7-6, 7-65. Rebecca Pike (BYU) def. Cindy Treber (UNLV)           6-4, 6-46. Nicole Schneider (BYU) def. Amy Hadziosmanovic (UNLV) 6-4, 1-6, 6-4
DOUBLES -- (BYU EARNS ONE TEAM POINT)
1. Klempner/Reynolds (BYU) def. Janus/Abram (UNLV)         8-32. MacFarlane/Schneider (BYU) vs. Chong/Treber (UNLV)      8-8 Did Not Finish3. Pike/Boulytcheva (BYU) def. Zsiros/Hadziosmanovic (UNLV)8-6(/Pre>