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SAN DIEGO – NAIA No. 11-ranked Point Loma Nazarene lost to No. 2 Fresno Pacific 6-3 on Saturday after dropping all three doubles points. The loss puts the Sea Lion record at 1-1 in the season and 0-1 in Golden State Athletic Conference while the Sunbirds remain undefeated at 5-0 overall and 4-0 in the conference.
"The girls match was a tough one," PLNU head coach Rich Hills said. "We were up big early on but we couldn't finish. I felt the ladies competed very well in singles but we have a ways to go on doubles. I can't wait to see how this young team responds and improves this year."
Singles kicked off the match and the two teams split the points. Points from courts one, two, and three went to Fresno Pacific and points from courts four, five and six went to Loma.
Hope Penner on court two and Sharon Reibstein on court three were each topped in straight sets; Penner fell to Erika Januskova 6-3, 6-1 while Reibstein lost her first set 6-1 to Yumiko Justin, and was just edged in her second 7-6. On court one, Maika Adair took her first set 6-4 but went on to lose the next two to Katarena Palivets 6-0, 6-2.
Courts four, five, and six were all Green and Gold wins, straight sets all, without a set giving more than three games to the opponents. Jessica Kwan on four beat Anna Mikhoylova 6-3, 6-0; Kiersten Steinhauer topped Elizabeth McFeeters 6-2, 6-2; and Wileen Chiu on six claimed a 6-3, 6-3 win over Nicole Simoni.
Though the match was tied going into doubles, PLNU's new pairings are still adjusting and it showed Saturday as all three points went to the Sunbirds. Only court three gave FPU a run for its money. No. 1 team Adair and Reibstein lost 8-1 to Januskova and Palivets and No. 2 team Steinhauer and Kwan had a similar 8-2 loss to the Sunbird pairing of Justin and Mikhaylova.
Chiu and Katelyn Abayan made up team No. 3 and they just lost 9-8 to McFeeters and Jennifer Ren.
"I think today we showed just how tough we are, not only as a team but as individuals,"said Kwan. "It was an encouraging way to start the season."
Steinhauer added, "I'm really proud of the way each girl on the team fights for every point. That's something that can't be taught."
The Sea Lions will stay at home for their next match against No. 5 Concordia University set for Tuesday at 4 pm.
#2 Fresno Pacific 6, #11 Point Loma Nazarene 3
02/18/12 at San Diego, CA (PLNU Tennis Courts)
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Singles competition |
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1. PALIIVETS, Katarena (FPU) def. ADAIR, Maika (PLNU) 4-6, 6-0, 6-2 |
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2. JANUSKOVA, Erika (FPU) def. PENNER, Hope (PLNU) 6-3, 6-1 |
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3. JUSTIN, Yumiko (FPU) def. REIBSTEIN, Sharon (PLNU) 6-1, 7-6 |
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4. KWAN, Jessica (PLNU) def. MIKHAYLOVA, Anna (FPU) 6-3, 6-0 |
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5. STEINHAUER, Kiersten (PLNU) def. McFEETERS, Elizabeth (FPU) 6-2, 6-2 |
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6. CHIU, Wileen (PLNU) def. SIMONI, Nicole (FPU) 6-3, 6-3 |
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Doubles competition |
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1. JANUSKOVA, Erika/PALIIVETS, Katarena (FPU) def. ADAIR, Maika/REIBSTEIN, Sharon (PLNU) 8-1 |
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2. JUSTIN, Yumiko/MIKHAYLOVA, Anna (FPU) def. KWAN, Jessica/STEINHAUER, Kiersten (PLNU) 8-2 |
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3. REN, Jennifer/McFEETERS, Elizabeth (FPU) def. CHIU, Wileen/ABAYAN, Katelyn (PLNU) 9-8 |
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Match Notes |
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Fresno Pacific 5-0, 4-0 GSAC; National ranking #2 |
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Point Loma Nazarene 1-1, 0-1 GSAC; National ranking #11 |
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Oeder of finish: singles (6,5,4,2,3,1); Doubles (2,3,1) |
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Official: Doug Fitzgerald T-2:35 |
