BRISTOL, Tenn. – A nine-match winning streak and a perfect record in Atlantic Sun Conference play came to an end for the University of North Florida women's tennis team Friday in a match against East Tennessee State that finished with a 4-0 score after being moved indoors due to inclement weather.
The match, which was originally slated for 12:30 p.m. on the ETSU campus, was pushed back to 1:30 p.m. and then moved to the Bristol Racket Club when rain began falling only minutes before the altered start time.
The Lady Ospreys (12-3, 6-1 A-Sun) slipped in doubles action for the first time this season, dropping matches at the Nos. 1 and 2 positions. ETSU (8-5, 5-0) took the two decisions by a score of 8-6 in each match while UNF's nationally-ranked No. 64 pair of Lauren Holton and Victoria Krook stayed undefeated and notched their 15th win with an 8-5 decision. Tara Byrne opened things for the Lady Bucs with a straight-set win in the No. 2 position before ETSU increased its lead to 3-0 with a win at the third slot.
The home team clinched the contest in a tightly battled No. 1 match. Freshman Aline Berkenbrock dropped the opening set but responded with a second-set win to keep the Lady Ospreys' chances alive. Berkenbrock had the advantage over her nationally ranked opponent in the third set, 4-3, but No. 109 Yevegeniya Stupak took the last three games to seal the win. UNF held the upper hand in the Nos. 4 and 5 matches when the outcome was decided, and both matches were ended so that the men's teams could begin their match.
The Lady Ospreys complete their final road trip of the season at USC Upstate Monday at 2 p.m.
