Jan. 20, 2013

PULLMAN, Wash. - Ksenia Googe's comeback victory at No. 3 singles sparked No. 32 Washington State to a 5-2 win over No. 61 Wyoming Sunday afternoon at the Simmelink Tennis Courts at Hollingbery Fieldhouse.

Googe was pushed to three sets, defeating Alexandra Kovacs 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. After dropping the first set, Googe began the third set down 2-0 but was able to rally back and win the next six games. The win was crucial, giving the Cougars a 3-2 lead going into the final two matches.

Charlotte Koning made quick work to secure the victory for WSU, defeating Silviya Zhelyazkova 6-1, 6-3, at No. 6, giving the Cougars an insurmountable 4-2 lead, with one match remaining on court. Olga Musilovich finished off play for the Cougars, winning 7-5, 6-2 over Jessica Parizher.

With the Cougars trailing 1-0 following doubles play, Andjela Kankaras fell to Veronica Popovici 6-4, 6-3 at No. 2. Liudmila Vasilieva brought the Cougars back to 2-2 after defeating Simona Synkova 6-3, 6-4 in the top singles position. The win puts Vasilieva at 95 wins in her career, second on WSU's all-time singles victories list.

The day began with doubles play as the pairing of Lize Leenknecht and Koning had difficulty getting anything going at No. 3, falling to Wyoming's Parizher and Zhelyazkova 8-0. At No. 1, Kankaras and Googe faced the No. 52 duo of Popovici and Synkova. In a back and forth match, Wyoming escaped with an 8-6 victory to clinch the doubles point. Vasilieva and Luzina were down 7-6 to Wyoming's Nemcova and Kovacs but did not finish since the doubles point had already been won.

The Cougars are next in action Friday when they face Purdue in the first round of the ITA National Qualifier in Evanston, Ill.

WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY TENNIS
No. 32 Washington State def. No. 61 Wyoming
January 20, 2013
Simmelink Tennis Courts at Hollingbery Fieldhouse
Attendance: 50
Pullman, Wash.

DOUBLES
No. 1 No. 52 Veronica Popovici and Simona Synkova (WYO.) def. Ksenia Googe (WSU) 8-6
No. 2 Sasa Nemcova and Alexandra Kovacs (WYO.) vs. Liudmila Vasilieva and Elizaveta Luzina (WSU) 7-6 DNF
No. 3 Jessica Parizher and Silviya Zhelyazkova (WYO.) def. Lize Leenknecht and Charlotte Koning (WSU) 8-0
Order of Finish: 3,1,2

SINGLES
No. 1 48 Liudmila Vasilieva (WSU) def. Simona Synkova (WYO.) 6-3, 6-4
No. 2 Veronica Popovici (WYO.) def. Andjela Kankaras (WSU) 6-4, 6-3
No. 3 Ksenia Googe (WSU) def. Alexandra Kovacs (WYO.) 3-6, 6-3, 6-2
No. 4 Elizaveta Luzina (WSU) def. Sasa Nemcova (WYO.) 6-4, 6-4
No. 5 Olga Musilovich (WSU) def. Jessica Parizher (WYO.) 7-5, 6-2
No. 6 Charlotte Koning (WSU) def. Silviya Zhelyazkova (WYO.) 6-1, 6-3
Order of Finish: 4,2,1,3,6,5