Hogs win stunner in Tulsa

Tulsa, Okla. — After trailing 3-1 in their match with the Golden Hurricane, the No. 17 Hogs stormed back to win out in singles and defeat No. 32 Tulsa, 4-3 Saturday at the Case Tennis Center. The clincher came at the No. 4 spot in singles, where Arkansas received a gutsy performance from sophomore Stephanie Roy. Roy, who was cramping throughout the second and third set of her match with Tulsa’s Anastasia Erofeeva, won her match, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, to give the Hogs their sixth victory of the season in grand style.“Stephanie’s (Roy) performance was one of the best I’ve ever seen,” said head coach Michael Hegarty. “It is this kind of a performance that is indicative of the great attitude that this young team is developing.”The epic day began when Tulsa was able to win a close doubles point at the No. 3 spot, after the No. 1 and 2 matches were split between the two teams. In the No. 3 match, the doubles team of Roy and freshman Valentina Starkova lost a close match to Michelle Farley and Rebecca Row in a tiebreak, 9-4 (4). With the lead, Tulsa had the momentum going into singles play and extended it to 2-0 after getting a win at the No. 5 spot from Row. She defeated freshman Kelsey Sundaram in straight sets, 6-2, 6-1. Arkansas finally got on the board when sophomore Kate Lukomskaya defeated Ewa Szatkowska, 6-3, 6-4. However, Tulsa was able to answer right back when they got the win at the No. 1 spot from Alexandra Kichoutkin, who defeated junior Anouk Tigu, 6-4, 6-1. It was at this time that the Hogs began their charge. Starting with freshman Claudine Paulson, Arkansas got their second point of the match when she defeated Farley, 6-4, 7-5. The run continued when sophomore Emily Carbone defeated JoAnne Karaitiana in straight sets at the No. 2 spot, 6-2, 6-3. The stage was set for Roy, who after losing her first set 4-6, was able to overcome cramps to win 6-4, 6-4, in the final two sets and give the Hogs the win.“This was one of the most hard fought wins we have ever had here at Arkansas,” said Hegarty. “Tulsa has a fantastic team this year and I was extremely impressed with them.”With the win, the Razorbacks move to 6-1 on the season, while Tulsa moves to 6-3. The Hogs will be back in action Saturday, February 20, when the team travels to Houston, Tex. to take on the Rice Owls. Complete match results will be posted on ArkansasRazorbacks.com.
Complete Results
#17 Arkansas 4, #32 Tulsa 3
Doubles (Order: 1, 2, 3*)1. Paulson/Tigu (ARK) def. Karaitiana/Kichoutkin (TLS), 8-62. Erofeeva/Szatkowska (TLS) def. Lukomskaya/Sundaram (ARK), 8-63. Farley/Row (TLS) def. Roy/Starkova (ARK), 9-8 (4)
Singles (Order: 5, 3, 1, 6, 2, 4*)1. Alexandra Kichoutkin (TLS) def. Anouk Tigu (ARK), 6-4, 6-12. Emily Carbone (ARK) def. JoAnne Karaitiana (TLS), 6-2, 6-33. Kate Lukomskaya (ARK) def. Ewa Szatkowska (TLS), 6-3, 6-44. Stephanie Roy (ARK) def. Anastasia Erofeeva (TLS), 4-6, 6-4, 6-45. Rebecca Row (TLS) def. Kelsey Sundaram (ARK), 6-2, 6-16. Claudine Paulson (ARK) def. Michelle Farley (TLS), 6-4, 7-5