With a 4-2 victory Thursday against Iowa State (4-19), the No. 49 Missouri tennis team (11-11) advanced to the second round of the Big 12 Conference Championship.
“We’re very thrilled and grateful to advance,” coach Sasha Schmid said in a news release. “I have to give a lot of credit to Iowa State. I think they battled incredibly hard. All the courts were battles; doubles courts and all the singles courts were battles.”
Missouri swept the top four singles matches.
Senior Nina Pantic took the victory in No. 1 singles action after dropping the first set, defeating Iowa State senior Maria Macedo 1-6, 7-6 (2) and 6-4. Sophomore Rachael Stuhlmann won the No. 2 singles matchup against ISU freshman Ksenia Pronina (6-3 and 6-3).
In No. 3 singles, junior Maria Christensen outlasted Simona Cacciuttolo 6-3, 6-7 (3) and 2-2 before Cacciuttolo withdrew from the match.
Freshman Alex Clark posted a 6-3, 6-3 victory over freshman Meghan Cassens in the No. 4 singles match.
Iowa State responded by winning the No. 5 and 6 singles matches. Langhorst defeated senior Jamie Mera (6-3, 1-6 and 6-2) and Marie-Christine Chartier won her match against junior Annemijn Koenen 6-4, 7-6 (5).
“I think the girls wanted it and fought really hard,” Schmid said in the release. “I’m really proud of (Pantic) for coming through in the breaker. I’m proud of all of them, but especially Stuhlmann in coming back from an injury, and she fought like heck out there to get the win.”
Pantic and Mera, the No. 83 doubles team in the nation, defeated Iowa State’s top doubles squad of Tessa Lang and Macedo 8-3.
Christensen and Koenen received the victory in the No. 2 doubles matchup when the contest ended with a DNF.
In the No. 3 doubles matchup, freshman duo of Ashleigh Chiaf and Clark sealed the doubles point for Missouri by winning their match against Jenna Langhorst and Pronina 8-6.
Missouri now advances to face the top-seeded Texas Tech Red Raiders on Friday morning. The matchups begin at 9 a.m. at the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center in College Station, Texas.
