Wildcats Kickstart Spring Campaign with Doubleheader Sweep

MANHATTAN, Kan. – K-State opened its spring dual season with a doubleheader sweep, taking down South Dakota 6-1 before finishing the day with a 7-0 blanking of Missouri State Saturday at Body First Indoor Tennis Center.

"I think we played well in singles, just being able to compete for the first time out," said head coach Jordan Smith. "You don't know how you're going to handle the first-match jitters or how we're going to play, especially with our freshmen. But I thought they did very well, and our veteran crew knew what to do, so I was happy with how they were able to take care of business.

"South Dakota came out well, they've gotten better over the last three years, so it definitely wasn't easy for us. And playing anyone after a tough first match was going to be hard, so credit to them for being able to respond against Missouri State."

K-State (2-0) earned the doubles points in both contests while combining for a 11-1 singles record. Ten of the 12 singles matchups were straight-set wins in favor of the Wildcats.

The Cats began the day by picking up the doubles point from South Dakota with a 6-0 win by the tandem of Florentine Dekkers and Ioana Gheorghita, ousting Estella Jaeger and Sonia Skobkareva at the No. 2 position.

K-State's top doubles pair of Karine-Marion Job and Maria Linares sealed the point by rattling off the last four games of their set to earn a 6-3 victory over Jana Lazarevic and Habiba Aly.

K-State then went on to win five of the six singles matches, four coming in straight sets.

Job, ranked No. 51 in the latest ITA rankings, turned in a convincing 6-2, 6-2 win on Court 1, defeating Lazarevic while Gheorghita's 6-3, 6-3 victory over Natka Kmoskova pushed the lead to 3-0.

Linares' come-from-behind three-setter clinched the Wildcats' decisive fourth point. The senior from Venezuela dropped the opening set 3-6 before storming back with scores of 6-2, 6-0 in sets two and three, respectively, to take down Aly. Linares improved her career record to 23-12 in three-set matches.

The freshman Dekkers cruised, 6-1, 6-4 over Skobkareva to claim her first collegiate dual victory at the fourth spot while Anna Turco rolled to a 6-3, 6-0 win at sixth position over Bea Havlickova.

Dekkers and Gheorghita claimed their second straight 6-0 doubles victory, dropping Missouri State's duo of Sandra Luckacova and Alyson Piskulic at the second spot. The pair improved their season record to 7-4 after playing together nine times during the fall campaign.

Freshman Dinara Alloyarova teamed up with Turco, a senior, at No. 3 doubles, earning a 6-3 win over Mara Presot and Kate Miley.

Alloyarova then went on to earn her first collegiate dual singles victory with a 6-0, 6-2 win over Lukacova at the sixth position.

Playing at the No. 2 singles slot, Dekkers blanked Tiera Jarmond, 6-0, 6-0, extending the Wildcat lead.

Job, Linares, Gheorghita and Turco each added two-set victories against the Bears, as all six in the singles lineup came away with straight-set victories.

Job combined to drop just five total games in her two matches after a 6-1, 6-0 decision over Mary Houston of Missouri State.

"We keep telling them, 'This isn't where we need to end, this is where our beginning is'," Smith added. "So I think they know where their base is now, and we just push it from here. We don't need to be satisfied with where we are, but we definitely need to be appreciative of where we are and know we can get better."

K-State improved to 3-0 all-time against South Dakota with an 18-3 all-time mark against Missouri State.

The Cats continue their six-match homestand on Friday, February 4 against Arkansas at 2 p.m. K-State will finish the weekend with a Sunday tilt with Iowa at 1 p.m. on February 6.

Match 1
South Dakota vs K-State
Jan 22, 2022 at Manhattan, Kan.
(Body First Indoor Tennis Center)

K-State 6, South Dakota 1

Singles competition
1. #51 Karine-Marion Job (KSU) def. Jana Lazarevic (USD) 6-2, 6-2
2. Estella Jaeger (USD) def. #125 Rosanna Maffei (KSU) 4-6, 7-5, 10-5
3. Maria Linares (KSU) def. Habiba Aly (USD) 3-6, 6-2, 6-0
4. Florentine Dekkers (KSU) def. Sonia Skobkareva (USD) 6-1, 6-4
5. Ioana Gheorghita (KSU) def. Natka Kmoskova (USD) 6-3, 6-3
6. Anna Turco (KSU) def. Bea Havlickova (USD) 6-3, 6-0

Doubles competition
1. Karine-Marion Job/Maria Linares (KSU) def. Jana Lazarevic/Habiba Aly (USD) 6-3
2. Florentine Dekkers/Ioana Gheorghita (KSU) def. Estella Jaeger/Sonia Skobkareva (USD) 6-0
3. Dinara Alloyarova/Anna Turco (KSU) vs. Natka Kmoskova/Bea Havlickova (USD) 5-5, unfinished

Match 2
Missouri State vs K-State
Jan 22, 2022 at Manhattan, Kan.
(Body First Indoor Tennis Center)

K-State 7, Missouri State 0

Singles competition
1. #51 Karine-Marion Job (KSU) def. Mary Houston (MSU) 6-1, 6-0
2. Florentine Dekkers (KSU) def. Tiera Jarmond (MSU) 6-0, 6-0
3. Maria Linares (KSU) def. Alyson Piskulic (MSU) 6-1, 6-1
4. Ioana Gheorghita (KSU) def. Kate Miley (MSU) 7-5, 6-3
5. Anna Turco (KSU) def. Mara Presot (MSU) 6-4, 6-1
6. Dinara Alloyarova (KSU) def. Sandra Lukacova (MSU) 6-0, 6-2

Doubles competition
1. Karine-Marion Job/Maria Linares (KSU) vs. Mary Houston/Tiera Jarmond (MSU) 4-4, unfinished
2. Florentine Dekkers/Ioana Gheorghita (KSU) def. Sandra Lukacova/Alyson Piskulic (MSU) 6-0
3. Dinara Alloyarova/Anna Turco (KSU) def. Mara Presot/Kate Miley (MSU) 6-3

Wildcats Kickstart Spring Campaign with Doubleheader Sweep

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Players Mentioned

Dinara Alloyarova

Florentine Dekkers

Ioana Gheorghita

Karine-Marion Job

Maria Linares

Rosanna Maffei

Anna Turco