Clarksville, TN – The Austin Peay State University (APSU) women’s tennis team locked up the No. 2 seed in next week’s Ohio Valley Conference Women’s Tennis Championship and rolled to a 6-1 victory over rival Murray State, Friday, at the Governors Tennis Courts.
Austin Peay (10-3, 5-2) set the tone early and used a dominant performance in doubles play to take the early advantage over Murray State (8-9, 4-3).
Jana Leder and Aleks Topalovic fired the opening salvo, handily winning, 6-1, in No. 2 doubles to put the Governors out front.
After dropping their first match of the season last time out, Fabienne Schmidt and Danielle Morris bounced back to pick up their team-best 11th doubles win of the season and clinch the doubles point for APSUs when they rolled to a 6-2 win in No. 1 singles.
With the doubles point already decided, Ana Albertson and Honoka Nakanishi were leading, 5-1, in No. 3 doubles, but the match was left unfinished.
In singles play, Austin Peay State University never let Murray State get in the match, with Morris and Toplavoic winning the first two matches to build a 3-0 lead. Morris’ win in No. 2 singles was her fifth-straight and her eighth win of the season, while Topalovic won in No. 4 singles for what was also her eighth win of the season.
Trailing 3-0, Murray State was able to score its only point of the match when Sara Loncarevic knocked off Schmidt in No. 1 singles.
After dropping its only point of the match, APSU bounced back when Martina Paladini-Jennings scored the match-clinching point with a win over Anja Loncarevic in No. 5 singles. Paladini-Jennings has now won six matches this season, with three wins each on the No. 4 and No. 5 lines.
With the match already decided, Nakanishi battled back after dropping the opening set to pick up a three-set win in No. 6 singles and stretch the Governors lead to 5-1. The win pushed Nakanishi’s record to 6-2 this season, while playing exclusively on the No. 6 line in singles action.
In the final match of the afternoon, Leder also battled back to post a three-set win and push her winning streak to ten-straight matches, despite dropping the opening set to Murray State’s Sarah Bureau in No. 3 singles. Leder has now won a team-best 11 singles matches this season, all while playing in the No. 3 singles position.
Results
Doubles
1. Fabienne Schmidt/Danielle Morris (APSU) def. Sara Loncarevic/Sarah Bureau (MUR) 6-2
2. Jana Leder/Aleks Topalovic (APSU) def. Stasya Sharapova/Marit Kreugel (MUR) 6-1
3. Honoka Nakanishi/Ana Albertson (APSU) vs. Anja Loncarevic/Gabrielle Geolier (MUR) 5-1, unfinished
Order of Finish: 2, 1*
Singles
1. Sara Loncarevic (MUR) def. Fabienne Schmidt (APSU) 6-2, 6-3
2. Danielle Morris (APSU) def. Stasya Sharapova (MUR) 6-3, 6-1
3. Jana Leder (APSU) def. Sarah Bureau (MUR) 2-6, 6-2, 6-3
4. Aleks Topalovic (APSU) def. Marit Kreugel (MUR) 6-1, 7-5
5. Martina Paladini-Jennings (APSU) def. Anja Loncarevic (MUR) 6-2, 6-2
6. Honoka Nakanishi (APSU) def. Gabrielle Geolier (MUR) 3-6, 6-0, 6-1
Order of Finish: 2, 4, 1, 5*, 6, 3
Next Up For APSU Women’s Tennis
With the regular season in the books, the Austin Peay State University women’s tennis team will be back in action at 2:00pm, April 24th, against Murray State in the semifinals of the OVC Women’s Tennis Tournament at the Wesselman Tennis Center in Evansville, Indiana. The winner of the semifinal match between the Govs and Racers will then play at 2:00pm, April 25th, against the winner of Southeast Missouri and Jacksonville State in the championship match of the OVC Tennis Tournament.
In the time of COVID-19 Coronavirus, there is always a chance that a match will be postponed or not come to fruition. For news, scheduling changes, and scores, be sure to check back at LetsGoPeay.com or follow the APSU Governors women’s tennis Twitter account (@AustinPeayWTN).
