Cyclones Make Best Big 12 Finish; Fall at OU

Sunday, April 25

Norman, Okla.

11:00 AM

Iowa State

Oklahoma

Cyclones Make Best Big 12 Finish; Fall at OU

04.25.2010 | Tennis

By: cyclones.com

NORMAN, Okla.- The Iowa State tennis team made its best finish in Big 12 Conference history, despite wrapping up regular-season play with a 6-1 loss at 37th-ranked Oklahoma Sunday afternoon. The Cyclones finished 10th in the league with a 2-9 Big 12 mark.

In the loss at Oklahoma, Maria Macedo picked up the Cyclones' only win of the day in the No. 2 singles slot. After defeating Huet 6-3 in the first set, Macedo fell 6-2 in the second. Macedo rallied to win the third, 7-5.

"Maria came out and won in the first set, but won fell in the second and came back to win the third," Espinosa said. "I was extremely happy with the way she handled the situation. She had a very tough opponent, but stayed very composed. It was great to see that in her."

In doubles action, Macedo and Tessa Lang dropped an 8-4 decision in the No. 1 slot. With the doubles point already decided, Tara Eckel and Maria Kalashnikova narrowly defeated Erin Karonis and Jenna Langhorst, 9-8.

"We came out in doubles and played okay," Iowa State head coach Armando Espinosa said. "It was not our best day. I think Erin and Jenna had a great opportunity to beat their team. Maria and Tessa had their chances, but couldn't make the break."

In other singles play, Karonis dropped her first set in the No. 1 slot, 6-4, to 103rd-ranked Constantinescu, but she fought back to win the second 6-4, before falling in a tiebreaker, 10-7, in place of a third set. Marie-Christine Chartier came up short, 6-3, 6-3, to Radan in the No. 5 slot, while Lang fell 6-2, 6-3 to Tsertsvadze in No. 3 singles. Kalashnikova defeated Langhorst, 6-1, 6-1, as Eckel delivered a 7-5, 6-0 decision to Wischer.

"Overall, I am very pleased with how the regular season went," Espinosa said. "We made some major strides in doubles, winning 22 doubles points in the Big 12 Conference and we've won more singles points as well. We've made improvements on last year, so overall I think we've had a successful regular season."

Iowa State's 2-9 10th-place finish marks its best Big 12 Conference finish since the 1999-2000 season, which ended in a three-way tie for 10th place with a record of 1-10. The Cyclones will travel to Austin, Texas, to play Texas Tech or Oklahoma State in the first round of the Big 12 Championship Thursday at 1:30 p.m.

Doubles Results
No. 1 #28 Ana-Maria Constantinescu/Teona Tsertsvadze (OU) def. Maria Macedo/Tessa Lang (ISU) 8-4
No. 2 Tara Eckel/Maria Kalashnikova (OU) def. Erin Karonis/Jenna Langhorst (ISU) 9-8 (1)
No. 3 Marie-Pier Huet/Kristina Radan (OU) def. Alyssa Palen/Liza Wischer (ISU) 8-0

Singles Results
No. 1 # 103 Ana-Maria Constantinescu (OU) def. Erin Karonis (ISU) 6-4, 4-6, 10-7
No. 2 Maria Macedo (ISU) def. Marie-Pier Huet (OU) 3-6, 6-2, 7-5
No. 3 Teona Tsertsvadze (OU) def. Tessa Lang (ISU) 6-2, 6-3
No. 4 Maria Kalashnikova (OU) def. Jenna Langhorst (ISU) 6-1, 6-1
No. 5 Kristina Radan (OU) def. Marie-Christine Chartier (ISU) 6-3, 6-3
No. 6 Tara Eckel (OU) def. Liza Wischer (ISU) 7-5, 6-0