OUAZ Women's Tennis Weekly Recap: Spirit Compete Through Three-Match Stretch
The OUAZ Women's Tennis team faced a demanding three-match slate last week, squaring off against Western New Mexico, Bethel (Kan.), and Colorado Mesa across two consecutive days at the Surprise Tennis Center. Despite strong individual singles performances and several competitive unfinished matches, the Spirit went 0–3 during the stretch and now move to 0–6 overall on the season.
Western New Mexico 6, OUAZ 1 (Feb. 19)
Western New Mexico opened the matchup by claiming the doubles point with wins on all three courts. Michelle Pugh and Martina Antich fell 6–1 at No. 1 doubles, while the No. 2 duo of Sienna Johnson and Antonia Kostoff dropped a 6–3 decision. At No. 3 doubles, Adaliz Diazgranados and Nikola Rusinova battled before falling 6–2.
OUAZ answered in singles with a strong performance from Michelle Pugh at No. 2, who earned the Spirit's lone team point with a convincing 6–0, 6–4 straight-set victory over Nikoletta Pytel.
Elsewhere in the lineup, Martina Antich competed well at the top position before falling 6–3, 6–4 at No. 1 singles. Antonia Kostoff pushed her No. 3 singles contest into a deciding super tiebreak after taking the second set 6–1, but Western New Mexico ultimately secured the match 10–5 in the breaker. The Mustangs collected the remaining singles courts in straight sets to secure the team win.
Bethel (Kan.) 6, OUAZ 1 (Feb. 20)
The Spirit returned to action the following day against Bethel, where the Threshers again secured the early advantage with a sweep in doubles play. Antich and Pugh fell 6–3 at No. 1, Kostoff and Johnson dropped a 6–2 decision at No. 2, and Rusinova with Diazgranados fell 6–1 at No. 3.
OUAZ's highlight came at the top of the singles lineup, where Martina Antich delivered an impressive straight-set win at No. 1 singles, defeating Daniela Casique 6–2, 6–3 to secure the Spirit's point.
Michelle Pugh nearly forced a deciding set victory at No. 2 singles, extending the second set to a tight 7–6 tiebreak before falling in straight sets. Bethel ultimately claimed the remaining singles matches in two sets to seal the dual.
Colorado Mesa 4, OUAZ 0 (Feb. 20)
OUAZ closed the busy stretch with Colorado Mesa later that evening. The Mavericks captured the doubles point with wins on all three courts, though the No. 1 pairing of Antich and Pugh kept things tight in a 7–5 loss.
In singles, Colorado Mesa secured three completed courts in straight sets at Nos. 3, 4, and 6 to clinch the shortened 4–0 decision. Several other Spirit matches showed strong competitiveness before being halted once the team result was decided.
At No. 1 singles, Martina Antich won the opening set 6–4 before the match was stopped in the second. Michelle Pugh was locked in a tight opening set at No. 2 before trailing 7–5 when play concluded, and Adaliz Diazgranados was tied 5–5 in her opening set at No. 5 when the match went unfinished.
Looking Ahead
Following the busy two-day stretch, the Spirit will now turn their attention toward conference competition as they look to build momentum heading into GSAC play.
OUAZ returns to the courts at home on Friday, February 27, hosting Arizona Christian in a GSAC matchup scheduled for 2:00 PM.
