CLEVELAND - The 2009 Delta State University women's tennis season didn't get off to quite the start coach Asa Atkinson and the Lady Statesmen (0-1) had hoped for, dropping a 5-2 decision Sunday to the Lady Warhawks of the University of Louisiana at Monroe (1-1).
Despite losing the team match, returning standouts Katarinna Nett and Cecile Benzaki made it an exciting afternoon for Lady Statesmen fans, as DSU claimed to top two singles matches of the day.
In No. 1 singles,
Katarinna Nett, a junior from Grafschaft, Germany, used her power game to dispatch ULM's Lena Satge 6-1 and 6-3.
In No. 2 singles,
Cecile Benzaki, a native of France and the 2008 GSC West Division Player of the Year, destroyed the Warhawks' Ana Burjaili 6-0 and 6-1.
The Warhawks controlled the match coming off a sweep in all three doubles matches. Nett and Crystle Ozols made it close in No. 1 doubles, but in the end Burjaili and Satge were too much 8-5.
ULM went on to claim three through six in singles for the 5-2 win.
The Lady Statesmen will return to the court on Feb. 20-21 in Arkadelphia, Ark., as DSU faces Northeastern Oklahoma State, Ouachita Baptist University, and Drury University.
Doubles:
1. Burjaili/Satge (ULM) def. Nett/Ozols (DS) 8-5
2. Makhanya/Winkel (ULM) def. Benzaki/Bouchaud (DS) 8-3
3. Clark/Lehmann (ULM) def. Araujo/Duarte (DS) 8-2
Singles:
1. Katarinna Nett (DS) def. Lena Satge (ULM) 6-1, 6-3
2. Cecile Benzaki (DS) def. Ana Burjaili (ULM) 6-0, 6-1
3. Monica Winkel (ULM) def. Milena Araujo (DS) 6-0, 6-4
4. Sharon Makhanya (ULM) def. Krystle Ozols (DS) 6-2, 6-4
5. Claire Clark (ULM) def. Tatiana Bouchaud (DS) 6-1, 6-1
6. Marion Lehmann (ULM) def. Priscilla Duarte (DS) 6-0, 6-0