Box Score MATCH RESULTS
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The No. 7 Nova Southeastern University women's tennis team fell in their regular season finale on Thursday to No. 2 Barry, 6-3, but are still in contention for the second seed in the upcoming Sunshine State Conference Tennis Championship.
The Sharks (15-3, 6-2 SSC) are tied with both the Buccaneers (15-2, 6-2 SSC) and fellow 6-2 Lynn, behind undefeated and No. 1-seeded Saint Leo. Tiebreaker rules take into account South Region rankings at the end of the conference regular season, which currently has NSU highest, at No. 2, with Lynn third and Barry fourth (both the NCAA and ITA have the three teams slotted as such). Check back to NSUSharks.com for official word as to the Sharks' seed and the full SSC Championship field.
On Thursday, Barry took two of three doubles matches to take a slim lead into singles play. The Shark win came in the No. 1 draw, where
Klaudia Boczova (Jr., Bratislova, Slovakia) and
Sabrina Kierberg (Sr., Munich, Germany) defeated the Bucs' duo of Barbora Kijasova and Sonja Larsen, 8-5.
Boczova evened the match up with a blazing-fast straight-set win in the top flight of singles. By the time she topped Emma Onila – the No. 2 player in the South Region according to the ITA – some matches' first sets were not yet completed. It was a 6-1, 6-0 victory for the Shark junior, still undefeated in singles on the season as she is now 12-0.
The other NSU win came quick as well, in the No. 5 slot, where
Nastassia Rubel (Jr., Minsk, Belarus) won over Kijasova, 6-1, 6-1. Down 4-3, Barry took the clinching point, courtesy of their No. 3, Sonja Larsen, in the next-to-last singles match. Despite the Bucs claiming the victory, Kierberg fought valiantly in the only competition still remaining, taking it to three sets against the No. 8 player in the country, Zuza Maciejewska before falling 4-6, 6-0, 12-10.
A week from today, Thursday, April 28 in Tampa, is the first day of the 2016 SSC Tennis Championship. Again, based on the tiebreaker scenario, the Sharks could still be the No. 2 seed, and the field will be set in full following the completion of regular season play.
