ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. -- Junior
Anda Ghinga remained unbeaten in singles this season, but Midwestern State saw a four-dual winning streak come to an end as No. 21-ranked Flagler defeated the Mustangs at Pollard Tennis Center on Friday morning, 5-2.
Flagler won its sixth consecutive dual match and is 6-2 overall this season with a 4-0 mark at home. MSU returns home from its annual Spring Break road trip with a 7-3 record after winning two of its three duals in Florida.
Ghinga won the first set over Charlotta Buss at No. 3 singles but needed to win a match tiebreak in order to extend the longest winning streak of her collegiate career. Ghinga prevailed, 6-3, 2-6, 10-4, but the fate of the Mustangs had already been sealed when she improved to 10-0 for the season.
The No. 9-ranked tandem of Nadja Meier and Dana Heimen got the Saints off to a strong start with a 6-2 victory over Ghinga and
Jessica Binzari to clinch the doubles point. Eryka Kruk and Charlotta Buss of Flagler defeated
Sydney Williams and
Sofia Giraldo at No. 3 doubles, 6-2.
Hannah Yip and
Sarah Mazaraki won their fourth consecutive match at No. 2 doubles for MSU with a 7-5 triumph over Leonie Floeth and Antonia Pfeiffer. Yip and Mazaraki are 6-1 this season with five wins coming in the No. 2 position.
Meier, who is ranked No. 2 among NCAA Division II singles players, won the match at No. 1 singles over Binzari, 6-4, 6-1. Meier is 7-1 in dual matches for the Saints and has reeled off six consecutive straight-set victories. Binzari, a junior from Romania, is 3-5 in the No. 1 position for MSU.
Yip, a junior from Malaysia, faced Heiman at No. 2 singles, but the sophomore from Germany won the match for the Saints, 7-5, 6-2. Yip opened the road trip with a three-set win over 31st-ranked Maja Issler of Embry-Riddler but has lost back-to-back matches and is 6-4 for Midwestern State this year.
Williams put a point on the board for the Stang Gang with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Laura Jipescu at No. 6 singles. The junior from Austin, Texas, improved to 2-1 for the season with both victories coming in the Sunshine State.
Giraldo saw a four-match winning streak in singles snapped with a 2-6, 2-6 loss to Leonie Floeth in the No. 4 spot. The freshman from Colombia had won seven consecutive sets before the setback against the Saints.
Eryka Kruk clinched the dual-match victory for Flagler by defeating
Skylar Minns at No. 5 singles, 6-1, 6-4. Minns, a senior from Aransas Pass, Texas, opened the season with three consecutive wins in singles but has fallen to 4-5 for the Mustangs.
Midwestern State opens conference play at MSU Tennis Center on Wednesday against No. 11-ranked Lubbock Christian. First serve is scheduled for 1 p.m.
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--MSUMustangs.com--