March 12, 2014

Box Score

LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - The UNLV women's tennis team lost 6-1 to No. 56 Ohio State on Wednesday at the Fertitta Tennis Complex.

The Lady Rebels fell to 6-6 while the Buckeyes improved to 9-4.

The teams turned in a spirited doubles session to start things. UNLV won at the top of the lineup as Lucia Batta and Santa Shumilina downed Noelle Malley and Granine O'Neill 8-4. OSU won easily on court two so the point came down to the third spot where Buckeyes Ferny Angeles Paz and Miho Kowase got by Iren Kotseva and Aleksandra Josifoska 8-7 to earn the point.

In singles play, UNLV's only point came at the No. 1 position where 51st-ranked Lucia Batta got the win over No. 116 Gabriella De Santis when the OSU player retired trailing 4-1 in the first set. The victory was the 113th of Batta's career, which moved her all alone into third place on the school's all-time list, passing former All-American Elena Gantcheva, who won 112 matches from 2005-08. Batta will now set her sights on the second spot and Jolene Watanabe who won 120 matches from 1987-90.

Next up, UNLV will host UC Santa Barbara on Saturday. Doubles begin at 10 a.m. and admission is free of charge.

UNLV WOMEN'S TENNIS RESULTS#56 OHIO STATE 6, UNLV 1March 12, 2014, at Las Vegas, NV(Fertitta Tennis Complex)
Singles competition 1. #51 Lucia Batta (UNLV) def. #116 Gabriella De Santis (OSU) 4-1, retired2. Miho Kowase (OSU) def. Aleksandra Josifoska (UNLV) 6-1, 6-23. Sandy Niehaus (OSU) def. Santa Shumilina (UNLV) 6-3, 6-14. Ferny Angeles Paz (OSU) def. Iren Kotseva (UNLV) 6-3, 6-25. Nicole Flower (OSU) def. Kamelia Dimitrova (UNLV) 6-2, 6-46. Grainne O'Neill (OSU) def. Paola Artiga (UNLV) 7-5, 6-0
Doubles competition 1. Santa Shumilina/Lucia Batta (UNLV) def. Noelle Malley/Grainne O'Neill (OSU) 8-42. Sandy Niehaus/Gabriella De Santis (OSU) def. Anett Ferenczi-Bako/Kamelia Dimitrova (UNLV) 8-13. Ferny Angeles Paz/Miho Kowase (OSU) def. Iren Kotseva/Aleksandra Josifoska (UNLV) 8-7