SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Two matches into the campaign, and Nevada Women's Tennis should probably come with a blood-pressure warning as the Pack again clinched a 4-3 victory in the final match of the day.
And, for the second-straight dual, it was senior
Milka Genkova coming back from a set down to outlast her foe for the clinching fourth point. Genkova bounced back from dropping the opening set of her match at No. 2 singles to post a 2-6, 7-6 (9), 7-5 victory over Santa Clara's Katherine Petty.
Nevada (2-0) had work to do after dropping the doubles point to start. Petty and Finley Kalinic defeated Genkova and
Cristina Moll Alles, 6-1, at No. 1 doubles, and the Broncos (0-1) earned the point with a 6-2 victory by the team of Jenna Marie Gordon and Giulia Hayer over Nevada's
Carla Del Barrio and
Anastasia Luneva at the No. 2 spot.
Junior
Selina Turulja got the Pack on the board quickly in singles play, cruising to a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Hayer at No. 5. But the Pack would be pushed to the brink, as Moll Alles and Del Barrio each fell at Nos. 3 and 4, respectively, giving Santa Clara a 3-1 lead.
Yet 3-1 leads have proven to be rather unsteady, of late, and the Pack played the odds well. Freshman
Mathilde Sarcelet pulled off a comeback win of her own, defeating Varya Zlotnik, 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-0, at No. 6 to keep Nevada alive. That was followed by another three-set Pack victory, as Luneva beat Gordon, 7-6, 2-6, 6-4 at the No. 1 spot to pull the Pack even and set up Genkova's clincher.
It will be a quick turnaround for the Pack, as it finishes the Bay Area trip Saturday at 3 p.m. against San Francisco, at the Olympic Club.
Nevada at Santa Clara Match Results
Doubles
1. Katherine Petty/Finley Kalinic (SCU) d.
Cristina Moll Alles/
Milka Genkova (NEV), 6-1
2. Jenna Marie Gordon/Giulia Hayer (SCU) d.
Carla Del Barrio/
Anastasia Luneva (NEV), 6-2
3.
Isabella Nunez/
Selina Turulja (NEV) d. Jamie Schroer/Varya Zlotnik (SCU), 6-3
Order of finish: 1, 2, 3
Singles
1. Luneva (NEV) d. Gordon (SCU), 7-6, 2-6, 6-4
2. Genkova (NEV) d. Petty (SCU), 2-6, 7-6 (9), 7-5
3. Schroer (SCU) d. Moll Alles (NEV), 6-2, 6-4
4. Kalinic (SCU) d. Del Barrio (NEV), 6-2, 7-5
5. Turulja (NEV) d. Hayer (SCU), 6-2, 6-1
6.
Mathilde Sarcelet (NEV) d. Zlotnik (SCU), 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-0
Order of finish: 5, 4, 3, 6, 1, 2