JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Sophomores Lauren Holton and Victoria Krook showed why they are a nationally-ranked doubles pair on Wednesday when they sealed another win to help the University of North Florida take the doubles point and the match 5-2 against Stetson in its Atlantic Sun Conference opener at the UNF Tennis Complex. "It is always good to receive national recognition," UNF head coach Rodrigo Puebla said. "We have previously had one team ranked in our NCAA Division I era, and these two girls have helped us win every doubles point this season."
Holton and Krook, who were tagged as the No. 76 duo in the country in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association poll, got things started for the Lady Ospreys (6-2, 1-0 A-Sun) with an 8-5 win at the No. 3 doubles position and improved to 7-0 on the season. Stetson (4 -4, 0-1) rallied in the top doubles slot to erase a 5-2 deficit and eventually take an 8-6 victory to even doubles play at 1-1.
Senior Ina Durcakova provided clinching performances in doubles and singles action to keep UNF unbeaten at home this season. Playing with freshman Nikita van Lierop, she secured the doubles point for the Lady Ospreys with a 10-5 win in the tiebreaker before guaranteeing a UNF victory with a three-set come-from-behind win in individual action. "She is finally stepping up and playing at the level that she needs to play at for us to be successful," Puebla said. "Her leadership and experience is beginning to show."
After falling in the first set 7-5, Durcakova notched 6-2 and 6-1 wins in the second and third sets, respectively, in her No. 4 singles match.
Krook turned in the first singles result of the match, posting a 6-2, 6-0 win against Natalie Gorham in the sixth slot. The Hatters' Valentina Galbarini notched a 6-4, 6-1 win against freshman Aline Berkenbrock in the top singles position and Unnati Purushatham defeated van Lierop in straight-sets in the No. 3 position. The match was knotted at 2-2 before junior Raquel Castro returned her score. She sprinted to a 4-0 lead in the first set but lost six-straight games to drop the opening set 6-4. However, she turned things around with a 6-2 second-set win and closed the match with a 6-1 win in set number three. With the match decided, Holton and Shannon Gunning finished their third set of action, which began before Durcakova completed her match-seizing win. Holton slipped 6-3 in the first set and then bounced back with a pair of 6-4 set wins to steal the win.
"It is huge for us to play well and get the win to start our conference schedule," Puebla said. "Our intensity picked up, and the girls showed how badly they wanted this win. This is the way we needed to start in order to achieve our goal of winning the conference."
The Lady Ospreys remain on their home court and will look for their sixth home win Friday when Florida Gulf Coast visits for a 2 p.m. A-Sun matchup.
