No. 38 K-State Powers Past SMU, 4-1, Friday Afternoon

MANHATTAN, Kan. – K-State began Friday's match with a dramatic come-from-behind win in doubles play and carried that momentum over into singles competition as the Wildcats moved to 7-4 this spring following a 4-1 win over SMU Friday at Mike Goss Tennis Stadium.

"I was proud of how we came out today after such a tough loss to Iowa last weekend," head coach Jordan Smith said. "We emphasized taking some chances and not relying on matches being given to us, and I thought we did that today. SMU is a very tough team and I thought we made great adjustments late in doubles and then carried that over into singles play."

After dropping the first doubles match at the No. 3 position, K-State found itself down, 5-3, at the No. 2 position before the team of Margot Decker and Anna Turco battled back for a 7-5 win to even the competition. It would then come down to Maria Linares and Karine-Marion Job at the No. 1 spot for the doubles point as the duo also erased a late 5-3 deficit and came away with a dramatic 7-6 win in a tiebreaker (7-2) to put the Wildcats up, 1-0, for the match. The win moved the duo to 5-1 this season in doubles competition after becoming the team's No. 1 tandem back on February 4.

In singles play, SMU cruised to a two-set win at the No. 1 singles position to tie the match, slightly ahead of Job's 6-2, 6-2, win at the No. 4 spot – her fifth win in six tries this season - as the Wildcats went back in front, 2-1, for the match. Decker then took care of business at the No. 3 position, 6-3, 6-3, to push the Wildcats to a 3-1 advantage and one point away from clinching the match.

Maria Linares, playing at the No. 2 singles spot for the first time this season, dropped her first set, 6-1, before rebounding with a 6-3 win in set two. She then cruised to a 6-2 win in the decisive third set to win her match and clinch the overall win for K-State.

"I had a little bit of familiarity with my opponent and really just tried to be more aggressive on offense," Linares said. "We worked all week on making adjustments and being tougher and stronger late in matches and that's what I did after the first set."
The Wildcats, in the midst of a five-match homestand, welcome Nebraska to Manhattan on Wednesday afternoon before hosting four straight Big 12 matches this month.

"Having this stretch of matches at home is key for us," Smith added. "We just have to set the tone and get better each match, expect to win and not worry about who is across the net from us."

For the latest on K-State tennis follow @kstatesports and @KStateTEN on Twitter or Kansas State Tennis on Facebook.

Kansas State vs. SMU
February 28, 2020
Mike Goss Tennis Complex

Doubles Play
Order of Finish: 3, 2, 1

No. 1. Linares/Job (KSU) def. Nylander/Tcherkes (SMU) 7-6 (7-2)
No. 2. Decker/Turco (KSU) def. Petchey/Claudia (SMU) 7-5
No. 3. Yesaki/Hollebeck (SMU) def. Gheorghita/Mesquita (KSU) 6-2

Singles Play:
Order of Finish: 1, 4, 3, 2

No. 1. Jackie Nylander (SMU) def. Anna Turco (KSU) 6-0, 6-0
No. 2. Maria Linares (KSU) def. I. Tcherkes Zede (SMU) 1-6, 6-3, 6-2
No. 3. Margot Decker (KSU) def. S. Monarrez Yesaki (SMU) 6-3, 6-3
No. 4. Karine-Marion Job (KSU) def. Claudia Bartolome (SMU) 6-2, 6-2
No. 5. Rosanna Maffei (KSU) vs. Nicole Petchey (SMU) 2-6, 6-4, unfinished
No. 6. Ines Mesquita (KSU) vs. Katherine Jakeway (SMU) 4-6, 5-2, unfinished

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Margot Decker

Karine-Marion Job

Maria Linares

Rosanna Maffei

Ines Mesquita

Anna Turco

Players Mentioned

Margot Decker

Karine-Marion Job

Maria Linares

Rosanna Maffei

Ines Mesquita

Anna Turco

Kansas State University Athletics