The Milwaukee women’s tennis team faced a challenging opponent on the road, falling to Youngstown State 5-2 on Saturday at the YSU Indoor Tennis Center. The match marked the beginning of a demanding weekend of conference play for the Panthers, who are now 6-12 overall and 0-2 in Horizon League play. Their opponents, the Penguins, improve to 8-7 on the season, with a 1-1 record in the league.
Head coach Mark Goldin highlighted the competitive nature of the match, stating, “The team fought hard. The level was even much of the day and it came down to a few points in the end. Youngstown State was super-mentally tough and won the big points today. It was a fun match with great sportsmanship all around and great tennis. We have to stay focused with another big one tomorrow versus Cleveland State.”
In doubles play, Milwaukee started strong, particularly on courts one and two. Nadiia Konieva and Sara Simonova earned a decisive 6-1 victory against Julia Marko and Ghada Dirninger at No. 1 doubles. However, Youngstown State captured the doubles point by clinching wins on the other two courts. On court two, Laure Razet and Nikola Nikolajeva led early but fell to Line Greyling and Lili Minich with a 6-3 score.
During singles competition, the Panthers secured victories in two thrilling three-set matches. Emilia Durska overcame a first-set loss to defeat Dirninger 2-6, 6-4, 1-0 (10-8) at No. 4 singles. Meanwhile, Simonova prevailed against Yoana Dudova at No. 6 singles with a score of 6-1, 4-6, 1-0 (10-6).
Milwaukee is set to face Cleveland State next with the match scheduled to start at 9 a.m. CT. Youngstown State proved to be a formidable opponent, as evidenced by their performance, but the Panthers are keen to move forward and focus on their upcoming challenge.
