University of Missouri
(#30) Wichita State
@MizzouTennis Comeback Bid Falls Short, 4-3
2/23/2018 7:36:00 PM | Tennis
COLUMBIA, Mo. – The No. 49-ranked Mizzou Tennis team made a valiant comeback bid Friday night at the Mizzou Tennis Complex, but fell just short in a 4-3 loss to No. 30 Wichita State in a match that lasted nearly six hours.
For the first time all season, the Tigers (10-2) lost the doubles point. Sophomore Mackenzy Middlebrooks (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) and freshman Ellie Wright (Gainesville, Fla.) started things off by picking up their sixth straight win, and 10th of the season, with a 6-3 victory at No. 3. Yet Wichita State rebounded with a 6-4 win at No. 2, and a 7-5 comeback win at No. 1 to secure the doubles point.
The Shockers (9-3) won the first two singles matches to make it a commanding 3-0 lead before Wright posted a 6-4, 7-6 (5) win over Giulia Guidetti at No. 3, then Middlebrooks brought the Tigers within a point with a 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 win at No. 4 over Gabriela Porubin. That was Middlebrooks' 15th consecutive singles win of the season going back to last fall, and made her a perfect 9-0 in duals this Spring.
With the Tigers' backs still against the wall, senior co-captain Amina Ismail (Maineville, Ohio) made her own comeback with the Shockers just a set away from clinching the match, but her 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 win at No. 6 over Sarvinoz Saidhujaeva knotted the match up at 3-3.
For the second straight Friday, the match came down to senior co-captain Clare Raley (Atlanta, Ga.), and just like last week's win vs. Minnesota, the final contest came down to a deciding third set. This time, it even went to a tiebreaker, yet WSU's Marta Bellucco won to capture the match and the team win, 6-7 (6), 6-2, 7-6 (4).
"Tough one for us today," said Head Coach Colt Gaston. "We didn't get off to the start we wanted in doubles, but I felt like we came back strong in singles and were in a good spot with our seniors out there with it all on the line. It just didn't go our way today. A lot of credit to Wichita State for fighting hard and coming back in that last match, but we have to play better on the big points as a whole moving forward. I was proud of the fight the girls gave, and we look forward to building tomorrow and getting ready for K-State and UMKC."
UP NEXT
Mizzou concludes its third straight weekend at home with a pair of matches Sunday at the Mizzou Tennis Complex. The Tigers face No. 35 Kansas State at 1 p.m., and UMKC at 5 p.m. For all the latest on Mizzou Tennis, stay tuned to mutigers.com and follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
MATCH-BY-MATCH RESULTS
#30 Wichita State 4, #49 Mizzou 3
DOUBLES (order of finish: 3, 2, 1)
Fatima Bizhukova/Marta Bellucco (WSU) def. Clare Raley/Serena Nash (MIZ), 7-5
Giulia Guidetti/Ting-Ya Hsu (WSU) def. Amina Ismail/Taylor Gruber (MIZ), 6-4
Mackenzy Middlebrooks/Ellie Wright (MIZ) def. Sandra Honigova/Gabriela Porubin (WSU), 6-3
SINGLES (order of finish: 2, 1, 3, 4, 6, 5)
#71 Fatima Bizhukova (WSU) def. Serena Nash (MIZ), 6-3, 6-4
#106 Sandra Honigova (WSU) def. Marta Oliveira (MIZ), 6-1, 6-1
Ellie Wright (MIZ) def. Giulia Guidetti (WSU), 6-4, 7-6 (5)
Mackenzy Middlebrooks (MIZ) def. Gabriela Porubin (WSU), 6-3, 3-6, 6-4
Marta Bellucco (WSU) def. Clare Raley (MIZ), 6-7 (6), 6-2, 7-6 (4)
Amina Ismail (MIZ) def. Sarvinoz Saidhujaeva (WSU), 3-6, 6-2, 6-4
Players Mentioned
