Feb. 25, 2012

Results

MILWAUKEE - The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women's tennis team won the doubles point and then got a pair of come-from-behind victories in singles to pull out a 4-3 win over Ball State Saturday night at LeClub.

Kristin Kurer won in straight-sets for Milwaukee at six-singles before Maddy Soule and Christina Colarossi rallied to push the Panthers over the top. Both players fought back after dropping the first set and each closed out their match with a 6-4 win in the deciding third set.

"This was our best win as a program since I have been here," UWM head coach Sean McInerney said. "It was a total team effort. Ball State is a very good team and we found a way to beat them. I am very proud of this team and how hard they compete on a daily basis."

The Panthers set the tone in doubles play. Soule and Colarossi were dominant in the top slot, capturing an 8-2 victory. Then, Kelly Fritz and Kurer dug out of an early hole to claim an 8-5 win in the third spot, moving their spring record as a tandem to 8-0.

"We have won eight out of the 10 doubles points this spring," McInerney said. "We have come so far in doubles and continued success at doubles will allow us to compete with the best teams in our conference. Obviously Maddy and Christina have led the way and proven to be a great tandem, but Kelly and Kristin came back from a 2-5 hole today to win again. I am very proud of how we competed and feel great about our doubles play."

That set the stage for some thrilling action in singles. Kurer's win at six-singles came quickly while Ball State answered with victories in the third and fifth spots. Chelsea Bailey put up a strong fight in the second spot before falling in three sets. But, Soule and Colarossi were each able to surge ahead in their matches and finish things out.

"This was a war. Every match was extremely competitive and honestly I think it was great tennis from both teams," McInerney said. "All three matches we won were great wins. Maddy found a way to beat a good player that played a difficult style. Christina picked up a huge win for us and beat a very good senior in three sets. I was blown away by how well Kristin played. I know we are going to need her to play at that level to reach our high goals and she really stepped up in a big way today to secure the win."

UWM plays two more challenging matches next weekend. The Panthers host Northern Iowa Friday before traveling to Northern Illinois Saturday.