CONWAY, Ark. – The Central Arkansas women's tennis team fought hard but came up short against UT Arlington, falling 4-1 in a competitive match on Friday afternoon at the UCA Tennis Complex.  

The Bears started strong in doubles play, securing wins on courts two and three to claim the doubles point. Nanami Fukushima and Nanoka Kazama notched a 6-3 victory on court two, while Ting-An Chen and Harune Shigemasu delivered a 6-4 win on court three to give UCA the early advantage.  

However, the Mavericks responded in singles action, winning four straight matches to clinch the overall victory. Ana Paula Jimenez outlasted Vichit Vimuktananda in a close 6-4, 7-5 battle on court one, while Mialy Ranaivo edged past Kazama in a hard-fought three-set match, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6, at No. 2 singles.  

Valeriia Ivanovskaia and Ioana Dumitrescu secured straight-set victories at No. 3 and No. 4, respectively, to seal the win for UT Arlington. The remaining two matches went unfinished, with both Chen and Seohyun Park locked in tight third sets when play was called.  

The Bears look to bounce back on March 9th where they will head to Memphis, Tennesee to face off against Jacksonville State at 10 A.M. 

UT Arlington 4, Central Arkansas 1  

Doubles Results:
- No. 1: Valeriia Ivanovskaia/Mialy Ranaivo (UTA) def. Konomi Miyakawa/Vichit Vimuktananda (UCA), 6-4  
- No. 2: Nanami Fukushima/Nanoka Kazama (UCA) def. Ioana Dumitrescu/Ana Paula Jimenez (UTA), 6-3  
- No. 3: Ting-An Chen/Harune Shigemasu (UCA) def. Maria Lu Araoz-Gosn/Nika Novikova (UTA), 6-4  

Singles Results: 
- No. 1: Ana Paula Jimenez (UTA) def. Vichit Vimuktananda (UCA), 6-4, 7-5  
- No. 2: Mialy Ranaivo (UTA) def. Nanoka Kazama (UCA), 4-6, 6-4, 7-6  
- No. 3: Valeriia Ivanovskaia (UTA) def. Konomi Miyakawa (UCA), 6-1, 6-4  
- No. 4: Ioana Dumitrescu (UTA) def. Harune Shigemasu (UCA), 6-2, 6-2  
- No. 5: Ting-An Chen (UCA) vs. Nika Novikova (UTA) unfinished (6-4, 5-7, 5-4)  
- No. 6: Seohyun Park (UCA) vs. Maria Lu Araoz-Gosn (UTA) unfinished (7-6, 2-6, 0-3)