"Today was tough for us," said head coach Jordan Smith. "Not the start we would have liked out of this team. I knew there was going to be a little rust on us, but that can never be an excuse. You always have to give your all on the court."
Competing in their first dual match since last March, the Wildcats got off to a slow start as the Razorbacks took advantage early in the No. 1 and 2 spots for doubles play to score the first point of the match.
In a matchup of nationally-ranked pairings, Arkansas' Lauren Alter and Tatum Rice squeezed by K-State's Maria Linares and Karine-Marion Job in the coveted No. 1 spot with a 6-4 set win.
Job and Linares both sit at the No. 46 spot in the ITA National Doubles poll, while the duo of Rice and Alter both hold the No. 28 position in the national rankings.
Hoping to extend the doubles portion of the match, senior Lilla Barzo and junior Anna Turco both were upended by the Razorbacks' Morgan Cross and Indianna Spink in their set, 6-4, giving the Razorbacks an 1-0 edge.
"We managed to get a good showing out of our three doubles pairings," said Smith. "Just have to do better at not being content with being even in the score counts."
K-State found a few opportunities to turn the tides in the middle of the lineup in singles play, as Linares, Barzo and Turco all pushed their matchups to third sets. Each player fought off first-set deficits with victories in their second sets, but the Razorbacks ended any hopes of a comeback on the final set. Linares found no room in her third set against the Razorbacks' Tatum Rice and fell with a score line of 2-6, 6-3, 2-6.
Playing out of the No. 5 spot, Turco pushed the tempo against Arkansas' Lauren Alter, as both players battled through two intense sets inside the Billingsley Tennis Center. Turco came away with a tiebreaker in the second set at a score of 7-6 (3), but Alter pulled away in the third set at 1-0 (6).
After dropping a 6-2 decision in the opening set, Barzo kicked it into gear in her match with Arkansas' Laura Rjikers, as the Szeged, Hungary, native recorded a 6-2 win in the second set at the No. 6 spot. Rjikers would put a halt to Barzo's comeback with a swift 6-3 victory in the third set, increasing Arkansas' lead to 4-0.
There was a new face at the top of the lineup for the Wildcats on Sunday, as Job received the nod to take on the Razorbacks' Indianna Spink at the No. 1 position. The match would end in two sets, however, as Spink handed Job her first loss at the top spot with a score of 3-6, 2-6.
Junior Rosanna Maffei and freshman Manami Ukita were handed two-set defeats on Sunday in singles' competition, as Maffei fell to Kelly Keller of Arkansas, 1-6, 0-6, while Ukita dropped her first dual match as a Wildcat against the Razorbacks' Morgan Cross, 1-6, 6-7 (5).
"Unfortunately, we didn't come out well at all in the beginning of singles," Smith said. "It's going to be hard to beat a good team when you basically gift them an early lead. Thankfully, we fought back really well and had a moment of being able to pull off the team win. Arkansas came up with the goods on each court and we lost to the better team today."
This is the first time since the 2017 campaign the Wildcats have fell in their season opener.
K-State gets another chance to redeem itself on Sunday, February 7, as the team travels down to Tempe, Arizona, for a Pac-12 showdown with Arizona State.
"Its early in the season and I know this team is great enough to rise above this," Smith stated. "Moving forward, getting these ladies ready to take on Arizona State will be our mindset this week."
K-State at Arkansas
January 31, 2021
Billingsley Tennis Center
Doubles Play
Order of Finish: 2, 1
No. 1. #28 Alter/Rice (AR) def. #46 Linares/Job (KSU), 6-4
No. 2. Cross/Spink (AR) def. Barzo/Turco (KSU), 6-4
No. 3. Gheorghita/Ukita (KSU) vs. Carr/Keller (AR), 4-5, unfinished
Singles Play:
Order of Finish: 2, 1, 4, 5, 6, 3
No. 1. Indianna Spink (AR) def. Karine-Marion Job (KSU), 6-3, 6-2
No. 2. Kelly Keller (AR) def. Rosanna Maffei (KSU), 6-1, 6-0
No. 3. Tatum Rice (AR) def. Maria Linares (KSU), 6-2, 3-6, 6-2
No. 4. Morgan Cross (AR) def. Manami Ukita (KSU), 6-1, 7-6 (5)
No. 5. Lauren Alter (AR) def. Anna Turco (KSU), 6-3, 6-7 (3), 1-0 (6)
No. 6. Laura Rjikers (AR) def. Lilla Barzo (KSU), 6-2, 2-6, 6-3
For the latest on K-State tennis follow @kstatesports and @KStateTEN on Twitter or K-State Women's Tennis on Facebook.
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