Cyclones Take No. 6 Texas To The Wire

Friday, April 12

Ames, Iowa

11:00 AM

Iowa State

Texas

Cyclones Take No. 6 Texas To The Wire

04.12.2019 | Tennis

URBANDALE, Iowa - Iowa State (5-11, 1-7 Big 12) gave No. 6 Texas (15-3, 8-0 Big 12) all it could handle Friday afternoon at the Life Time Fitness in Urbandale, Iowa. The Cyclones' upset bid came up just short as they fell 4-3 to the Longhorns.

The day was highlighted by Maty Cancini's upset victory over No. 29 Bianca Turati in the No. 1 singles match. It is one of the biggest upsets in Cyclone tennis history.

Ekaterina Repina also picked up a win over a ranked opponent, knocking off No. 123 Bojana Markovic in the No. 4 singles match.

"I am so proud of our effort and performance," said first-year head coach Boomer Saia. "Texas is a world-class team and we were right there with them. We believed we could win. We never play a logo or a ranking."

HOW IT HAPPENED
Iowa State came out firing on all cylinders to take the doubles point from the Longhorns. The Venezuelan duo of Maty Cancini and Annabella Bonadonna picked up a dominant win over Petra Granic and Tijana Spasojevic, 6-2.

The win marked Cancini's 100th victory as a Cyclone.

Ekaterina Repina and Margarita Timakova clinched the point for the Cyclones with a 6-4 victory over Fernanda Labrana and Bojana Markovic.

Texas took a 2-1 lead after winning the No. 2 and 3 singles matches, but the Cyclones wouldn't go away. Repina tied the match at 2-2 after her upset over No. 123 Markovic.

Repina got off to a solid start, taking the first set 6-4 before losing the second, 0-6. The sophomore was dominant in the final stanza, taking the third set 6-0 to seal the upset.

The Longhorns regained the lead after Fernanda Labrana took the No. 5 singles match, 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 over Annabella Bonadonna. The win gave Texas a 3-2 advantage with just two matches remaining.

In the No. 6 match, Margarita Timakova fell in a hard-fought battle to Tijana Spasojevic. Timakova took the first set 6-4 before faltering in the second, 2-6. Timakova took Spasojevic to the wire in the third set, but ultimately fell, 5-7.

Cancini finished off the match by completing one of the largest upsets in school history. After getting off to a slow start in set one, the junior knocked off No. 29 B. Turati in a three-set thriller, 3-6, 7-5, 1-0(6).

"Her mentality was great," Saia said. "She didn't waiver after falling in the first set. She's a warrior and everyone knows what kind of competitor she is."

NEXT UP
Iowa State take on Baylor (7-19, 1-6 Big 12) in its Big 12 regular season finale Sunday at noon at the Life Time Fitness in Urbandale, Iowa. Iowa State will honor its three seniors before the match.

Singles (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 1)
1. Maty Cancini (ISU) def. #29 Bianca Turati (UT), 3-6, 7-5, 1-0 (10-6)
2. #41 Anna Turati (UT) def. Regina Espindola (ISU), 6-0, 6-1
3. #55 Petra Granic (UT) def. Ekaterina Grib (ISU), 6-3, 6-1
4. Ekaterina Repina (ISU) def. #123 Bojana Markovic (UT), 6-4, 0-6, 6-0
5. Fernanda Labrana (UT) def. Annabella Bonadonna (ISU), 4-6, 6-3, 6-0
6. Tijana Spasojevic (UT) def. Margarita Timakova (ISU) 4-6, 6-2, 7-5

Doubles (2, 3)
1. Grib/Espindola (ISU) vs. #55 A. Turati/B. Turati (UT), 3-4, uf
2. Cancini/Bonadonna (ISU) def. Granic/Spasojevic (UT), 6-2
3. Repina/Timakova (ISU) def. Labrana/ Markovic (UT), 6-4