TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Alabama women’s tennis team (10-0, 2-0 SEC) defeated Kentucky (8-3, 0-2 SEC) in an exciting 4-3 win on Thursday night.

After going down 2-0 early in the match, the Crimson Tide slowly began to chip away at the Wildcats’ lead before finding itself in a 3-3 tie with one match to play. Freshman Addison Bowman rallied in a third set on court five to take a 7-6(4), 3-6, 6-2 win to secure Alabama’s 10^th consecutive victory.

Match Notes 

• Kentucky grabbed the early advantage with a win on court three, but Alabama evened the fight for the opening point with Kristina Paskauskas and Karla Bartel, capturing a 6-2 victory on court one
• The doubles point would come down to court two as the Wildcats claimed the victory off a 7-6(3) tiebreak
• Bartel recorded the Tide’s first point with a straight-set victory on court four (6-2, 6-1)
• Amina Sablinayeva added a hard fought, three-set win, downing Donna Le Roux on court six (5-7, 6-2, 6-0)
• Maria Andrienko followed with a three-set win of her own over Reese Sager, 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, on court three
• Bowman took the first set off a tiebreaker but fell in a heartbreaking 6-3 in the second set
• The freshman would take control of round three, cursing to a 6-2 victory to clinch the match for Alabama

Up Next 

• Alabama will host No. 14 Tennessee on Saturday, Feb. 28 at the Alabama Tennis Stadium
• The match between the Tide and the Volunteers is set to begin at 1 p.m. CT

Results

Doubles

1. Kristina Paskauskas/Karla Bartel (UA) def. Julia Zhu/Zoe Hammond (UK) 6-2

2. Asuncion Jadue/Reese Sager (UK) def. Klara Millicevic/Maria Andrienko (UA) 7-6 (7-3)

3. Ellie Myers/Marina Fuduric (UK) def. Amina Salibayeva/Addison Bowman (UA) 6-1

Singles

1. #119 Julia Zhu (UK) def. #53 Kristina Paskauskas (UA) 7-6 (7-4), 6-1

2. #94 Zoe Hammond (UK) def. Klara Millicevic (UA) 6-1, 6-1

3. Maria Andrienko (UA) def. Reese Sager (UK) 6-2, 4-6, 6-2

4. Karla Bartel (UA) def. Asuncion Jadue (UK) 6-2, 6-1

5. Addison Bowman (UA) def. Elena Molla (UK) 7-6 (7-4), 3-6, 6-2

6. Amina Salibayeva (UA) def. Donna Le Roux (UK) 5-7, 6-2, 6-0

Order of Finish: Doubles (3, 1, 2); Singles (2, 4, 1, 6, 3, 5)