March 14, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla.; - Despite two solid singles wins, the Penn State women's tennis team dropped a tough decision to Central Florida today, 5-2. Sophomore Denisa Zobeideh (Weston, Fla.) and senior Leyla Morzan (Vancouver, British Columbia) earned points for the Nittany Lions.
Central Florida took at 1-0 lead after winning two of three doubles matches. The Knights (8-4) moved ahead 4-0 after winning the first three singles matches, but Penn State (2-10, 0-2 Big Ten) responded with two straight victories. UCF picked up its fifth point in the final singles match of the day.
Penn State opened up the day with a win, as Zobeideh and junior Lauren McCarthy (Danbury, Conn.) defeated Alexis Rodriguez and Andrea Yacaman by an 8-4 margin in second doubles. Central Florida responded with a drawn out win in No. 1 singles, as Jenny Frisell and Elvira Serrot defeated junior Sarah Lotto (Toronto, Ontario) and freshman Monika Mical (Stalowa Wola, Poland), 8-6. In the deciding doubles match, Christy Core and Katie Orletsky clinched the doubles point for the Knights by stealing the No. 3 doubles victory from Morzan and freshman Maria Prishlyak (Kiev, Ukraine), 9-8(7).
In singles action, Core and Prishlyak met for a second time in fifth singles. Core put the Knights ahead 2-0 with a 6-4, 6-3 victory. In the No. 6 match-up freshman Michaela Stracar (Jericho, N.Y.) fell behind Orletsky early, dropping the first set 6-1. Stracar responded with a strong second set, but was couldn't hold on and fell, 7-6(5). Mical followed in first singles, losing her first set to Frisell, 6-2. Despite putting up a strong fight, Mical dropped her second set, 7-6(0), as Frisell clinched the victory and put the Knights up 4-0.
On the No. 3 court, Zobeideh jumped ahead of Serrot by winning the first set, 6-4. Serrot tied the match with a 6-1 victory in the second set, but Zobeideh sealed the deal with a convincing 6-2 win in the third. Morzan followed with the Lions' second straight point, topping Rodriguez in fourth singles, 6-3, 3-6, 10-8. McCarthy battled point for point with Yacaman in second singles, losing the first set by a narrow 7-6(3) margin. She was unable to bounce back in the second set, falling 6-3.
The Nittany Lions return home next week to host Lehigh at the Penn State Indoor Tennis Center on Thursday, March 19 at 4 p.m. Admission to the match is free. The Lions will be on the road again for a Big Ten match-up at Minnesota on Friday, March 27 at 6:30 p.m.
UCF 5, Penn State 2
Doubles
1. Jenny Frisell/Elvira Serrot (UCF) def. Sarah Lotto/Monika Mical (PSU) 8-6
2. Lauren McCarthy/Denisa Zobeideh (PSU) def. Alexis Rodriguez/Andrea Yacaman (UCF) 8-4
3. Christy Core/Katie Orletsky (UCF) def. Leyla Morzan/Maria Prishlyak (PSU) 9-8 (9-7)
Order of Finish: 2, 1, 3
Singles
1. Jenny Frisell (UCF) def. Monika Mical (PSU) 6-2, 7-6 (7-0)
2. Andrea Yacaman (UCF) def. Lauren McCarthy (PSU) 7-6 (7-4), 6-3
3. Denisa Zobeideh (PSU) def. Elvira Serrot (UCF) 6-4, 1-6, 6-2
4. Leyla Morzan (PSU) def. Alexis Rodriguez (UCF) 3-6, 6-3, 1-0 (10-8)
5. Christy Core (UCF) def. Maria Prishlyak (PSU) 6-4, 6-3
6. Katie Orletsky (UCF) def. Michaela Stracar (PSU) 6-1, 7-6 (7-5)
Order of Finish: 5, 6, 1, 3, 4, 2