University of North Texas Athletics
Tennis Closes Out Regionals With Tough Loss In Quarterfinals
10/26/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Day Three Recap
FORT WORTH, Texas (10/26/08) - The Mean Green tennis team wrapped up play at the ITA Southwest Regionals in Ft. Worth on Sunday after four days of play. The doubles team of Irina Paraschiv and Madura Ranganathan had a great run to the quarterfinals, but came up short against a determined Texas team.
Vanja Corovic and Marija Milic of Texas were too much for Paraschiv and Ranganthan as they battled back to win an emotional match 9-8 which included a back and forth tiebreak (7-5). Corovic and Milic were nationally ranked as the No. 12 team in doubles.
"It was a heartbreaking loss," North Texas head coach Sujay Lama commented. "We got so far, but couldn't get it done. I am still really proud of our whole team. They did a great job in this tournament and we have many things to look forward to."
There were several highlights in the four day span for the Mean Green.
On day one, Narine Kazarova had two impressive straight set victories in her qualifier's draw. She defeated Itzel Manzanera of UT-Arlington (6-1, 6-2) and Emily Braid of Rice (6-1, 6-1). Amy Joubert and Rachel Wilhelm beat Texas State's Lainy Chafitz and Nyssa Peele in dominant fashion (8-1).
Day two saw Madura Ranganathan defeat Texas A&M's Stephanie Davidson in a three set match (2-6, 7-5, 6-2). The doubles team of Ranganathan and Irina Paraschiv advanced to the third round after upseting the No.10 seeded Baylor team of Chmelarova/Filipiak (8-2).
One of the most impressive matches of the Regionals ended in a loss for North Texas' Irina Paraschiv. Paraschiv gave No. 2 seeded Megan Falcon of LSU all she could handle in a three set match. After dropping the first set, Falcon responded by taking the next two sets for the win. But looking back, it was a great match for Paraschiv who showed a lot of potential in hanging with one of the nation's best players.
On day three, The doubles team of Irina Paraschiv and Madura Ranganathan advanced to the quarterfinals of the main draw after defeating Texas A&M. It was a battle against the No.8 seeded team of Davidson/Frank, but North Texas' Paraschiv and Ranganathan came back to win 9-7. The Mean Green duo then fell short to the forementioned Texas team.
Looking back, this weekend proved to be a strong step forward for North Texas tennis as the squad competed with some of the best schools in the country.
The Mean Green gets back on the court November 7-9 as the team hosts the North Texas Classic in Denton.
North Texas Sunday Results
Akin/Mackenzie (UNT) def. Scida/Silva (UTSA) Withdraw
Corovic/Milic (UT) def. Paraschiv/Ranganathan (UNT) 9-8 (7-5)
Joubert/Wilhelm (UNT) def. Santacroce/Olivier (TAMU) 8-4
