No. 19 Texas Tech Women's Tennis Drops No. 35 TCU in Big 12 Semifinals, 4-1

The No. 19 Texas Tech women’s tennis team turned in a solid all-around effort en route to a dominant 4-1 semifinal victory over No. 35 TCU during Saturday’s Big 12 Tournament semifinal round at the Greenwood Tennis Center on the Oklahoma State campus.

The Lady Raiders (23-4) secured their second consecutive appearance in the championship match of the Big 12 Tournament. Texas Tech will meet top-seed and No. 15 Oklahoma State on Sunday. First serve is slated for 1 p.m. CT, and the match will be televised nationally by FOX Sports 2.

“I couldn’t be any prouder of this group of young ladies,” Texas Tech head coach Todd Petty said. “The grit and the energy level that they were able to carry over and play with after a late night yesterday. They were able to build off the doubles they played with. I thought we competed hard on all six singles courts even though Lynn took a loss today. She hadn’t played in a long time. I felt that she was ready after two great days of practice, and she had a tough matchup against one of TCU’s hottest players. Sabrina and the freshmen (Felicity Maltby and Alex Valenstein) are playing at an unbelievable level.”

The Lady Raiders raced out to fast start in doubles as Sabrina Federici and Felicity Maltby once again set the tone and cruised to a 6-0 win over Alexis Pereira and Aleksandra Zenovka on court two. Sarah Dvorak and Katelyn Jackson overcame a 3-2 deficit and reeled off four of the next five games to tuck away a 6-4 victory against Mia King and Olaya Garrido-Rivas in the No. 3 positon.

When play was stopped, Gabriela Talaba and Alex Valenstein were ahead 5-2 on the nation’s No. 30 pair of Seda Arantekin and Caroline Wegner on the No. 1 line.

Garrido-Rivas provided the equalizer for the Horned Frogs (15-6) and picked up a 6-3, 6-2 decision versus Lynn Kiro in the No. 4 slot. It was Kiro’s first singles appearance since the Houston match on March 12.

The momentum was short lived, and Maltby vaulted Texas Tech back to a 2-1 lead courtesy of a 6-2, 6-3 triumph against Zenovka on court five. She won the final four games of the opening set and the last three games of set two to close out her 20th victory on the season.

Talaba extended the Lady Raiders advantage to 3-1 when she notched a 6-2, 6-2 win over Marie Norris at the No. 1 position.

“Gabriela and I talked about before the match last night that she wasn’t going to be judged at all on what the scoreboard said,” Petty said. “She was going to be judged on her development and on her willingness to do what we’ve been working on in practice. We talked about not getting defensive. In my eyes, she won those development and willingness pieces last night. We challenged her to do those some things during today’s match, and she did just that. I felt like she was offensive and kept her opponent under pressure throughout the whole match.”

“This win was pretty big for our team,” Talaba said. “We lost 4-0 against TCU at home earlier this season. We were motivated to beat them, and we had nothing to lose. We had a strong start in doubles, and we fought for each point in order to get to a good result. What was important in singles for me was to hit the right shots during the right moments and to show that I’m tough in those moments. That’s what I did today. I came prepared on the court, and I did everything I could in order to get a point for this great team.”

Valenstein turned in the clinching point with a dominant 6-2, 6-1 victory versus Wegner in the No. 3 spot. She built a 4-1 advantage in the opening set and closed out the match with a run of four consecutive games.

Tech was in control on courts two and six when play was stopped. Dvorak held a 7-5, 1-1 edge over Arantekin, while Federici was on the verge of a straight sets triumph with a 6-3, 5-2 lead against Pereira.

“It’s a constant process, and we’re hoping to peak at the right time during conference championship and NCAA time,” Petty said. “It looks like they’re starting to find that. This group is resilient, and they work their tail off every day. They know there’s stop sign and no ending goal. We’re trying to get better every day. I know that sounds cliché, but that’s what we pursue each day.”

Visit www.TexasTech.com for the latest news and information on the women’s tennis program. Fans also can follow the program and live match updates on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/TechWomensTennis and @TexasTechTennis on Twitter.

No. 19 Texas Tech 4, No. 35 TCU 1

04/30/16 at Stillwater, Okla. (Greenwood Tennis Center)

Big 12 Tournament Semifinals

Doubles

1. No. 90 Gabriela Talaba/Alex Valenstein (TTU) vs. No. 30 Seda Arantekin/Caroline Wegner (TCU): 5-2, unfinished

2. Sabrina Federici/Felicity Maltby (TTU) defeats Alexis Pereira/Aleksandra Zenovka (TCU): 6-0

3. Sarah Dvorak/Katelyn Jackson (TTU) defeats Mia King/Olaya Garrido-Rivas (TCU): 6-4

Singles

1. No. 100 Gabriela Talaba (TTU) defeats Marie Norris (TCU): 6-2, 6-2

2. No. 88 Sarah Dvorak (TTU) vs. Seda Arantekin: 7-5, 1-1, unfinished

3. Alex Valenstein (TTU) defeats Carolina Wegner (TCU): 6-2, 6-1

4. Olaya Garrido-Rivas (TCU) defeats Lynn Kiro (TTU): 6-3, 6-2