Falcons Lose a 4-3 Heartbreaker to EMU

Saturday, March 23

Perrysburg, OH

1:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

Eastern Michigan

March 23, 2013 | Women's Tennis

BGSU's school-record 12-match win streak comes to an end

By: PERRYSBURG, Ohio (BGSU Athletic Communications)

The Bowling Green State University tennis team lost a heartbreaker on Saturday afternoon (March 23), falling by a 4-3 score to Eastern Michigan University. The Mid-American Conference match was held at the Perrysburg Tennis Center.

With the win, the Eagles improve to 6-10 overall and 1-1 in the MAC. The Falcons are now 12-2 and 1-1, respectively, and BGSU saw a school-record 12-match winning streak snapped.

The match came down to a third-set tiebreaker, with the Eagles pulling out a 9-7 decision.

For the 13th consecutive match, the Falcons won the doubles point. And, for the second day in a row, head coach Penny Dean's four seniors combined for a pair of doubles victories. BG's duos of Maddy Eccleston and Katie Grubb at the second flight and Mary Hill and Jade Johnson at the third level posted 8-4 wins.

The Eccleston/Grubb tandem defeated EMU's Daphne Friedrichs and Mariya Toncheva, while the Hill/Johnson team was victorious over Ankita Bhatia and Zsofia Biro.

EMU's lone doubles win came at the top flight, where Nino Mebuke and Klara Supejova defeated BGSU juniors Nikki Chiricosta and Emily Reuland by an 8-2 final.

In singles play, however, the Eagles won at the top-three flights as well as at flight number five. After BGSU had captured that doubles point, the first three singles matches to finish went in Eastern's favor.

Supejova downed Reuland at the second flight, while Bhatia defeated Eccleston at the third. When Biro outlasted Grubb in a pair of 7-5 decisions at flight five, the Eagles suddenly had a 3-1 lead.

Back battled BG, however, beginning with a win by freshman Katie Brozovich at the fourth flight. Brozovich won her 13th consecutive singles match, despite dropping a set for the first time since Jan. 18. The Falcon freshman faced Friedrichs at flight four, and the EMU sophomore eked out a 7-6 win in the opening set, capturing the tiebreaker.

Brozovich roared back, losing a combined three matches over the last two sets. After winning a 6-3 second set, Brozovich blanked Friedrichs, 6-0, in the third set to get the Falcons within 3-2.

And, Hill followed suit at the sixth flight, rallying back for a win after dropping the opening set. Toncheva pulled out a 6-3 win in the first set, but the BG senior battled back for a 7-5 win in the second. And, like Brozovich, Hill took control of the third set, posting a 6-2 win.

The match came down to the top flight, where Mebuke and Chiricosta were locked in a marathon battle. The BG junior won a 6-1 opening set, only to see the EMU junior respond with a 6-3 victory in the second set.

The third set was an epic struggle, with the players battling to a 6-6 tie, with Mebuke won the ensuing tiebreaker by that 9-7 result. Chiricosta saved six match points before Mebuke finally pulled out the win in the three-and-a-half-hour match.

The Falcons return to action next weekend, heading to Northern Illinois for a Friday (March 29) matchup with the Huskies. Then, BGSU continues a three-match road swing by taking on Akron (April 5) and Buffalo (April 6). The Falcons' next home match will be against Ball State on Friday, April 12.

EASTERN MICHIGAN 4, BGSU 3
Sat., March 23, 2013 – Perrysburg Tennis Center – Perrysburg, Ohio
SINGLES
1 – Nino Mebuke (EMU) def. Nikki Chiricosta 1-6, 6-3, 7-6(9-7)
2 – Klara Supejova (EMU) def. Emily Reuland 6-4, 6-1
3 – Ankita Bhatia (EMU) def. Maddy Eccleston 6-4, 6-2
4 – Katie Brozovich (BGSU) def. Daphne Friedrichs 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-0
5 – Zsofia Biro (EMU) def. Katie Grubb 7-5, 7-5
6 – Mary Hill (BGSU) def. Mariya Toncheva 3-6, 7-5, 6-2

DOUBLES
1 – Mebuke/Supejova (EMU) def. Chiricosta/Reuland 8-2
2 – Eccleston/Grubb (BGSU) def. Friedrichs/Toncheva 8-4
3 – Hill/Jade Johnson (BGSU) def. Bhatia/Biro 8-4

RECORDS
BGSU 12-2, 1-1 MAC
EMU 6-10, 1-1 MAC

ORDER OF FINISH
Doubles: 1,3,2
Singles: 2,3,5,4,6,1

UP NEXT FOR BGSU
Fri., March 29, at Northern Illinois