Austin Peay State University Women’s Tennis falls to Louisville and Kentucky

Clarksville, TN – The Austin Peay State University (APSU) women’s tennis senior Martina Paladini-Jennings picked up a victory against Louisville, Saturday, at the Bass-Rudd Tennis Center in Louisville, Kentucky, while freshman Denise Torrealba defeated a reigning All-American in the Governors’ match against Kentucky, Sunday, at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Complex in Lexington, Kentucky.

The APSU Govs kicked off their weekend in the Derby City against the Cardinals.

After dropping the doubles point, Austin Peay had multiple strong showing throughout its singles lineup, including Paladini-Jennings, who defeated Louisville’s Sasha Gorchanyuk in straight sets.
 
In her singles match from the No. 2 position, Torrealba fell in a narrow 10-point tiebreaker to one of the Cardinals’ premier singles players, Rhea Verma, who led her team with 14 singles victories last season.
 
After falling 6-1 against the Cardinals, the Govs made the hour-and-a-half trip to face their second SEC opponent of the season in Kentucky.

The Wildcats claimed the first point of the match after picking up victories from the No. 1 and No. 2 positions. Paladini-Jennings and Yu-Hua Cheng’s match on the No. 3 line went unfinished while the duo led, 4-3.

Kentucky took a 3-0 lead following wins on the No. 1 and No. 4 singles courts; however, Torrealba cut into the Wildcats’ lead with the biggest match of her young collegiate career.

Facing Kentucky’s Fiona Arrese, a 2021 Intercollegiate Tennis Association All-American and First Team All-SEC recipient last spring, Torrealba fell 6-4 in a close first set. The Neu-Isenburg, Germany native answered back with a 7-6 (4) victory in the second set and defeated the Wildcats’ premier player, 6-3, in the final set to claim the point.

Th Wildcats sealed the victory after defeating Aleks Topalovic in a three-set match on the No. 3 singles court.

Results vs. Louisville

Doubles

1. Sasha Gorchanyuk / Rhea Verma (LOU) def. Aleks Topalovic / Jana Leder (APSU), 6-2
2. Tatiana Simova / Andrea Di Palma (LOU) def. Honoka Nakanishi / Denise Torrealba (APSU), 6-2
3. Dina Chaika / Chelsea Sawyer (LOU), def. Martina Paladini-Jennings / Yu-Hua Cheng (APSU), 6-4

Order of Finish: 1, 2*, 3

Singles

1. Andrea Di Palma (LOU) def. Jana Leder (APSU), 6-1, 6-0
2. Rhea Verma (LOU) def. Denise Torrealba (APSU), 3-6, 6-3, 1-0 (10-6)
3. Chelsea Sawyer (LOU) def. Aleks Topalovic (APSU), 6-4, 6-2
4. Martina Paladini-Jennings (APSU) def. Sasha Gorchanyuk (LOU), 7-6, 6-3
5. Tatiana Simova (LOU) def. Honoka Nakanishi (APSU), 6-3, 6-1
6. Tyra Richardson (LOU) def. Yu-Hua Cheng (APSU), 6-3, 6-1

Order of Finish: 1, 3, 5*, 6, 2, 4

Results vs. Kentucky

Doubles

1. Fiona Arrese / Urrutia Florencia (UK) def. Jana Leder / Aleks Topalovic (APSU), 6-2
2. Carla Girbau / Ellie Eades (UK) def. Honoka Nakanishi / Denise Torrealba (APSU), 6-2
3. Yu-Hua Cheng Martina Paladini-Jennings (APSU) vs. Carlota Molina / Lidia Gonzalez (UK), unfinished at 4-3

Order of Finish: 1, 2*

Singles

1. Carla Girbau (UK) def. Jana Leder (APSU), 6-1, 6-0
2. Fiona Arrese (UK) def. Denise Torrealba (APSU), 6-4, 7-6 (4), 6-3 
3. Florencia Urrutia (UK) def. Aleks Topalovic (APSU), 4-6, 6-1, 6-1
4. Lidia Gonzalez (UK) def. Martina Paladini-Jennings (APSU), 6-4, 6-1
5. Ellie Eades (UK) vs. Honoka Nakanishi (APSU), Unfinished at 6-2, 2-1 
6. Maialen Morante (UK) vs. Yu-Hua Cheng (APSU), Unfinished at 3-2

Order of Finish: 1, 4, 2, 3*

Follow the APSU Govs

For news and updates ahead of the Governors’ match against Western Kentucky, follow the women’s tennis team on Twitter(@GovsWTN), Instagram (@GovsTennis) and Facebook (Austin Peay Tennis).

Next Up For APSU Women’s Tennis

The Austin Peay State University women’s tennis team concludes their stay in the Bluegrass State when they travel to Western Kentucky for a rescheduled match on March 4th that begins at 1:00pm at the Michael O. Buchanon Tennis Facility in Bowling Green, Kentucky.