by Brandon Call
Daily Lobo
The UNM women's tennis team was riding its longest winning streak of the season, until the best team in the conference got in its way Friday.
After winning the last five matches, the No. 3-seeded Lobos' season ended with a
4-1 loss to top-seeded Brigham Young on Friday in the semifinals of the Mountain West Conference Tournament in Colorado Springs, Colo.
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UNM ends the 2007 season with a 12-11 record overall and a 5-5 conference record.
Head coach Kathy Kolankiewicz said her team gave its all against BYU.
"The team played well," she said during a phone interview Sunday. "BYU is a very good team, and they are solid at all of their positions. They were the better team on the day. We definitely gave them a scare."
The Lobos lost the doubles point by dropping the No. 2 and 3 positions 8-3 and 8-2,
respectively.
At the top doubles spot, Sandra Zmak and Lucy Scott were tied at six when the point went to BYU.
Kolankiewicz said UNM had a good chance of winning the
No. 1 doubles match.
"BYU has very strong doubles teams," she said. "Sandra and Lucy believed they could take their match. They were playing very well together, and they gave it their best. Unfortunately, the match was called before they could close it out."
In singles, Jennifer Ryba got the lone UNM win, defeating BYU's Dolly Chang 6-2, 6-3.
Senior Nora Quintal had match point against BYU's Chie Hayasaka, leading 7-6, 5-3 before the match was called. The contest also marked Quintal's last as a Lobo.
Quintal leaves UNM on top of her game, Kolankiewicz said.
"Nora played great," she said. "She struggled a little bit in the middle of the season, but the last two or three weeks, she has really come alive. She has played some of her best tennis, and that is a great way to go out."
With the loss of top player Iva Gersic due to an ankle injury Feb. 23, the Lobos have overcome a lot this season, Kolankiewicz said.
"What happened this year makes teams stronger," she said. "We showed that we have heart in overcoming a lot of obstacles we've faced this season. The players have responded well, and I'm very proud of
our effort."
Despite the setbacks this season, the team is eager for next year, Kolankiewicz said.
"When your No. 1, 2, 3, 5, 6 and 7 players return, you're going to have an experienced team," she said. "Adding three other promising players will also improve our team. Overall, we're looking forward to a solid season next season."
Doubles
No. 1 Sandra Zmak/Lucy Scott of UNM played Jennifer Miccoli/Anastasia Surkova of BYU; match did not finish; tied 6-6
No. 2 Lauren Jones/Dolly Chang of BYU defeated Ola Abou-Zekry/Jennifer Ryba of UNM 8-3
No. 3 Kristina Doerr/Sofia Holden of BYU defeated Nora Quintal/Maria Sotirchos of UNM 8-2
Singles
No. 1 Surkova of BYU defeated Abou-Zekry of UNM 6-4, 6-2
No. 2 Jones of BYU defeated Zmak of UNM 7-5, 6-2
No. 3 Doerr of BYU played Mackenzie White of UNM; match did not finish; Doerr led 6-3, 3-6, 4-0
No. 4 Quintal of UNM played Chie Hayasaka of BYU; match did not finish; Quintal led 5-3
No. 5 Holden of BYU defeated Scott of UNM 6-2, 6-3
No. 6 Ryba of UNM defeated Chang of BYU 6-2, 6-3
