TULSA, Okla. - The University of Central Arkansas dropped the first dual match of the 2021 spring season as they fell to the University of Wyoming 5-2. 

The Bears could not muster enough against the Cowgirls, as they swept doubles play and claimed four of the six singles matches to best UCA in the first match of the Tulsa Invitational. 
 

UCA 2 UW 5

Doubles:

While UW claimed all three doubles matches, however the Bears did not make it easy, especially in the case of sophomore Fuka Nonoyama and freshman Paulina Engback. The pair was matched against junior Ana Fernandez and freshman Sophie Zehender and put them to their limits as a duo. It took an extra point to sit down the Bears as the Cowgirls pair won 7-6.

Singles:

Over on the singles side, the Bears enjoyed a little more success as two competitors claimed victories over the Cowgirls. In the No. 1 slot, Nonoyama took on junior Maria Oreshkina. Oreshkina, the former All-Mountain West selection, put on a competitive match against the Nonoyama but could not match the Bears No. 1. Nonoyama grabbed the first set 6-2 but dropped the second set on a tie-breaker as the Cowgirls star claimed it 7-6. From that point on, it was all Nonoyama as she won the final set 6-1.

The Bear's final point went to freshman Jaeun Lee, who has been on a tear since the spring season started. Since the beginning of the season, Lee is 4-1 in singles play with victories over Texas A&M, Houston and North Texas. In this outing, Lee played in the No. 4 slot against fellow freshman Lucia Malinak. Both competitors put on a show as Malinak won the first set 6-4, and then Lee came back in the second as she took the set 6-4. The final rally was a coin flip as both competitors looked evenly matched in the third. However, Lee came out on top as she bested her competition in the third 10-6.

Tomorrow the Bears will finish up their matchup against the University of Tulsa as they played the singles session today and have the doubles portion scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Following that, UCA takes on the Louisiana Tech University starting at 10 a.m.