Upset Bid Comes Up Short In Narrow Loss

Panther winning streak snapped at three

MILWAUKEE – The Milwaukee women's tennis team saw its upset bid come up just short in an incredibly close 4-3 loss to Akron Friday night from North Shore Elite.

The loss is the first for UWM in four matches, seeing their winning streak halted at three in the season's early going.

"This was an amazing battle," Milwaukee head coach Jeff Aranda said. "If a point goes our way here or there, this is a win. That's how close this match was. I'm so proud of this team though for their effort tonight. They really care about each other and this team and that was very evident tonight."

Akron and Milwaukee split the first two doubles matches to set up a decisive third match to decide the early lead. The two tandems went back and forth, going into extras with the Zips able to muster out just enough for the 7-6 win

UWM bounced back and showed their resilience, taking three of the top four spots in singles play in decisive fashion.

Labina Petrovska took the top spot, cruising through the first set before battling for a straight-sets win, 6-1, 7-6 (4).

Laurie Clark was once again dominant. The freshman barely gave her opponent any breathing room in a suffocating 6-1, 6-1 win.

Alysa Straub gave the Panthers their third win in singles action. The junior won the first set 6-3 and was up 1-0 in the second before her opponent had to withdraw due to injury.

Milwaukee couldn't quite find the decisive fourth point in singles play though. Dana Shannon and Aerielle Pendleton both forced their matches to three sets but UWM came up just short in this one to end its winning streak.

The Panthers will look to start a new winning streak Saturday when Northern Illinois comes to town for a 12:30 match at North Shore Elite.

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Players Mentioned

Aerielle Pendleton: Junior

Dana Shannon: Senior

Alysa Straub: Junior

Labina Petrovska: Sophomore

Laurie Clark: Freshman

Players Mentioned

Aerielle Pendleton
: Junior

Dana Shannon
: Senior

Alysa Straub
: Junior

Labina Petrovska
: Sophomore

Laurie Clark
: Freshman