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Junior Dominique Dulski returns the ball to a Colorado player during a doubles match Friday at the Linda Estes Tennis Center. The Lobos beat Colorado 5-2.

Junior Dominique Dulski returns the ball to a Colorado player during a doubles match Friday at the Linda Estes Tennis Center. The Lobos beat Colorado 5-2.

Women's Tennis: Lobos remain unscathed at home

New Mexico improved to 4-2 on the season and remain unbeaten at home after defeating the University of Denver in a tightly contested matchup on Friday.

UNM got off to a hot start when Rachana Bhat and Ludivine Burguiere defeated Charlotte Derbyshire and Evy Van Genechten, 6-1 in doubles play. Denver’s Morgan Barnhill and Bianca Mok responded by winning the second matchup against Ruth Copas and Andrea Leblanc, 6-2.

Dominique Dulski and Emily Olivier were able to garner the coveted doubles point by taking the third and final doubles match against Julia O’Loughlin and Maureen Slattery, 6-4.

The team was unable to secure the doubles point in either of its matchups last weekend, and head coach Kelcy McKenna said it was an important step to earning the win on Friday.

“To come back and respond this way, obviously I’m really proud of them,” she said. “It was a well-earned victory because it was a dogfight.”

McKenna said Friday was the first time Dulski and Olivier have been paired together this season. She said the duo’s ability to close things out while serving for the match was huge.

“Dominique is a really good doubles player; she’s always ready at the net,” Olivier said. “There was a lot of pressure, but it was fun and it felt great to win the doubles point.”

Denver, after losing the doubles point, jumped back into the lead by winning the first two singles matches. O’Laughlin bested Olivier, 6-0, 6-3 and Mok defeated Dulski by the same margin.

New Mexico and Denver played each other evenly, trading points throughout the day. Burguiere pulled the Lobos even again at two points apiece when she won her match, 6-2, 6-3 over Derbyshire.

Burguiere said playing for each other is a team tactic that she has grown to appreciate. She said getting an individual victory is nice, but what really matters is the team win.

“I used to be selfish on the court and just want to win for myself,” she said. “I realized that when I cheer for my teammates, I play much better. I really played for my team today.”

Copas lost to Van Genechten 5-7, 1-6, but Leblanc tied it back up with a victory over Slattery, 6-2, 6-3. Moments after her victory, Leblanc sprinted to the courts on the other side of the building to cheer on her teammate.

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Leblanc joined Burguiere and the rest of her teammates as both schools lined the side of the court, following the players as they switched courts on the odd games. The support seemed to provide Bhat the confidence and energy needed down the stretch.

After splitting the first two sets, Bhat fell into a 4-3 deficit late in the third set against Barnhill. With her teammates cheering her on, Bhat battled back to win the final three games to seal the victory, 7-5, 3-6, 6-4.

The 4-3 win breaks a two-game losing streak for the Lobos and also snaps a six-game winning streak for the Pioneers.

New Mexico will stay at home and host Utah next weekend before it goes on the road again. The match will take place at 5 p.m. on Saturday at the Linda Estes Tennis Center.

Robert Maler is a sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers cross country, tennis, and track and field. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @robert_maler.

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