Jan. 31, 2009

PALO ALTO, Calif. - The 38th-ranked UNLV women's tennis team lost three three-set matches en route to a stunning 4-3 defeat at the hands of No. 51 Colorado to close out play Saturday at the inaugural ITA Kickoff Weekend tournament on the campus of Stanford University.

Playing at the Taube Family Tennis Stadium, the Lady Rebels dropped to 3-2 while the Buffaloes improved to 3-2.

The morning began with UNLV winning the doubles point by taking both completed matches. Kristina Nedeltcheva and Katy Williams combined for an 8-5 win at the top spot while Alisa Razina and Anna Maskaljun won 8-6 at No. 2. The final match was then halted with the Lady Rebel duo leading 6-5.

In singles, Nedeltcheva continued her impressive play with an easy 6-1, 6-4 win over Melisa Esposito at the top of the lineup. The junior, who is in her first season at the squad's No. 1 singles position, improved to 9-3 overall, including three ranked victories this month. Also playing well is sophomore Adrienn Hidvegi, who won her match 6-4, 6-4 at No. 5 to up her record this season to 10-2.

Those two victories gave UNLV a 3-0 lead before CU rallied with straight-set wins on courts three, four and six. Now tied 3-3, all eyes moved to court two where Lady Rebel Nikol Dimitrova was leading 5-2 in the final set of a marathon match. However, the senior wasted two match points and eventually lost in a tiebreaker to Camila Belassi, 5-7, 6-2, 7-6 (7-4), to give the Buffaloes the upset.

UNLV has three weeks to regroup as the Lady Rebels are off until hosting Illinois State on Feb. 20 beginning at 10 a.m.

ITA KICKOFF WEEKEND TOURNAMENT#51 COLORADO 4, #38 UNLV 3Jan. 31, 2009, at Stanford (Taube Family Tennis Stadium)
Doubles -- (UNLV wins one team point)1. Nedeltcheva/Williams (UNLV) def. Esposito/Belassi (CU) 8-52. Alisa Razina/Maskaljun (UNLV) def. Jendrian/Anuszkiewicz (CU) 8-63. Hidvegi/Dimitrova (UNLV) vs. Probert/Hedelund-Jensen (CU) DNF
Singles -- (CU wins four team points)1. Kristina Nedeltcheva (UNLV) def. Melisa Esposito (CU) 6-1, 6-42. Camila Belassi (CU) def. Nikol Dimitrova (UNLV) 5-7, 6-2, 7-6 (4)3. Franziska Jendrian (CU) def. Katy Williams (UNLV) 6-4, 6-24. Abbie Probert (CU) def. Anna Maskaljun (UNLV) 6-4, 6-35. Adrienn Hidvegi (UNLV) def. Anna Anuszkiewicz (CU) 6-4, 6-46. Michala Hedelund-Jensen (CU) def. Rumyana Terzieva (UNLV) 6-4, 6-4