MT uses all-around effort in victory over UALR

MURFREESBORO - Middle Tennessee used an all-around effort to pick up a 5-2 victory over UALR on Sunday at the Buck Bouldin Tennis Center.

The Blue Raiders swept all three doubles contests and won four out of six singles matches to improve to 7-7 overall this season. UALR fell to 11-7 on the year.

MT opened doubles play with an 8-2 win as top-seeded Nayara Moraes/Irina Constantinide defeated Yana Kakovkina and Viktoriya Plyuta. In No. 3 doubles, the tandem of Alexandra Torres and Yuiri Nomoto snatched an 8-3 win over the Trojans' Dane Vorster and Kamilla Galieva to claim the doubles point. Carla Nava and Flavia Nagayama won doubles No. 2 with an 8-3 victory over Michaela McShane and Veronique Lukisch.

Nomoto helped the Raiders claim their second point with 6-2, 6-2 sweep of Kakovkina at the No. 2 spot. UALR earned its first point of the day with a 6-1, 6-0 victory from Christel Amsullem over Torres.

In the top singles action, the freshman Constantinide defeated Luksich, 6-1, 6-3 to give the Blue Raiders a two-point cushion. The senior Nava won her seventh straight match with a hard fought straight set win over Vorster, 6-2, 7-6 (7-2).

Nagayama fell in three sets to UALR's Plyuta, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2. To close out the match, Moraes won her No. 4 contest over Galieva 3-6, 6-3, 6-3.

The Blue Raiders wrap up the homestand against South Alabama next Sunday, March 24. First serve is set for 11 a.m. at the Buck Bouldin Tennis Center.

Middle Tennessee 5, UALR 2

Singles competition

1. Constantinide, Irina (MT) def. Luksich, Veronique (UALR) 6-1, 6-3
2. Nomoto, Yuiri (MT) def. Kakovkina, Yana (UALR) 6-2, 6-2
3. Plyuta, Viktoriya (UALR) def. Nagayama, Flavia (MT) 6-4, 4-6, 6-2
4. Moraes, Nayara (MT) def. Galieva, Kamilla (UALR) 3-6, 6-3, 6-3
5. Nava, Carla (MT) def. Vorster, Dané (UALR) 6-2, 7-6 (7-2)
6. Amsallem, Christel (UALR) def. Torres, Alexandra (MT) 6-1, 6-0

Doubles competition

1. Moraes, Nayara/Constantinide, Irina (MT) def. Kakovkina, Yana/Plyuta, Viktoriya (UALR) 8-2
2. Nava, Carla/Nagayama, Flavia (MT) def. McShane, Michaela/Luksich, Veronique (UALR) 8-2
3. Nomoto, Yuiri/Torres, Alexandra (MT) def. Vorster, Dané/Galieva, Kamilla (UALR) 8-3

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