ATHENS, Ga. – The William & Mary women's tennis team suffered a 4-1 setback to Big 12 opponent Kansas State in the opening round of the ITA Kick-Off Weekend on Friday afternoon at the Lindsey Hopkins Indoor Courts. The Tribe (1-2) started strong by winning the doubles point, but the Wildcats (2-0) claimed the top four singles positions in straight sets to pick up the team victory and advance to Saturday's final.
 
How it Happened
- The Tribe opened the contest by taking the doubles point for the second time in three matches with wins at No. 1 and No. 3. Junior Natalia Perry and freshman Mila Saric won their third match in a row, downing Ioana Gheorghita and Karine-Marion Job, 6-3, at the No. 3 position.
- Trailing 4-3, senior Clara Tanielian and junior Rosie Cheng won the final three games at the top spot to upend K-State's Margot Decker and Anna Turco, 6-4, and clinch the initial point of the match. The Tribe duo is 2-0 at No.1 this season.
- Ines Mesquita and Decker posted singles wins to put the Wildcats on top. Mesquita dropped just two games in downing senior Lauren Goodman, 6-0, 6-2, at No. 4, while Decker topped Perry, 6-2, 6-4, at No. 2.
- The No. 1 and No. 3 positions went down to the wire. Kansas State's Anna Turco held off Tanielian, 6-4, 7-5, at No. 3 to extend the Wildcats' lead to 3-1.
- At the top spot, K-State's Maria Linares narrowly won the first set over Cheng, 7-5, and then rallied from a 5-3 deficit in the second to force a tiebreaker. In the break, Cheng had a set point up 6-5, but Linares fought it off and won the final three points to clinch the Kansas State win, 7-6 (6).
- Saric jumped out to a set advantage over Gheorghita at the No. 6 spot, winning the first by a 6-2 score. Her match was abandoned when the team result was decided.
 
Up Next
The Tribe meets South Florida in the consolation match on Saturday morning at 10 a.m. Admission to the event at Lindsey Hopkins Indoor Courts in Athens is free. Live stats and video are available at GeorgiaDogs.com or by visiting the women's tennis schedule page.
 
Kansas State 4, William & Mary 1
Singles
No. 1 – Maria Linares (KSU) def. Rosie Cheng (W&M) – 7-5, 7-6 (6)
No. 2 – Margot Decker (KSU) def. Natalia Perry (W&M) – 6-2, 6-4
No. 3 – Anna Turco (KSU) def. Clara Tanielian (W&M) – 6-4, 7-5
No. 4 – Ines Mesquita (KSU) def. Lauren Goodman (W&M) – 6-0, 6-2
No. 5 – Charlotte Madson (W&M) vs. Karine-Marion Job (KSU) – DNF, 3-6, 1-2
No. 6 – Mila Saric (W&M) vs. Ioana Gheorghita (KSU) – DNF, 6-2
Finishing Order: 4, 2, 3, 1*
 
Doubles
No. 1 – Cheng/Tanielian (W&M) def. Decker/Turco (KSU) – 6-4
No. 2 – Goodman/Madson (W&M) vs. Linares/Mesquita (KSU) – DNF, 4-5
No. 3 – Perry/Saric (W&M) def. Gheorghita/Job (KSU) – 6-3
Finishing Order: 3, 1*