For the second straight year, the No. 11 Lady Raiders advanced to the Elite Eight after taking down No. 6 Texas, 4-1, in the Sweet 16.
With the win, Texas Tech (23-6) snapped the Longhorn’s 19-match win streak and ended their season.
The Lady Raiders opened the match clinching the doubles point for the second time this season over Texas. Alex Valenstein and Lana Rush took down Bianca Turati and Anna Turati, 6-3, on court three to give the Lady Raiders the advantage. Doubles pair Felicity Maltby and Gabriela Talaba clinched the point with a dominant 6-1 win over Marta Perez-Mur and Dani Wagland on court two.
Senior Katelyn Jackson was the singles match off as she downed Wagland 6-0, 6-3 on court six, giving the Lady Raiders a 2-0 lead. Jackson improved to 7-1 on the season.
Texas’ Petra Granic earned the Longhorns lone point of the match as she defeated Valenstein, 6-1, 6-4, on court three. Valenstein moved to 5-2 when playing at the No. 4 position.
Senior Gabriela Talaba defeated No. 1 Bianca Turati in straight sets (6-4, 6-2), marking the highest ranked win in program history.
With three courts still in play, Sarah Dvorak went into a deciding third set on court five. She quickly took the advantage with a 6-4 win in set one. Perez-Mur responded with a 6-3 set two to tie the match. Dvorak wouldn’t let up as she won three of the four final games to clinch the match with a 6-3 third set.
UP NEXT
The Lady Raiders will face No. 3 Duke on Saturday at 11 a.m. CT in the quarterfinals. The two are scheduled to play at the Wake Forest Tennis Complex, weather permitting.
Courtesy of Texas Tech Athletics Communications Department
