Women's tennis starts Big Sky play with loss to Montana

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Results

GREELEY, Colo. – Saturday was not a great day for any Northern Colorado team facing the University of Montana as the women's tennis team fell 6-1, joining the two basketball teams on the losing end against the Grizzlies.

The lone win for the women's tennis team came at No. 6 singles as sophomore Jennifer Buchanan won in straight sets over Lauren Gibson, 6-3, 6-3.

Freshman Stephanie Catlin also had a great battle at number five singles. She lost the first set 6-2 but bounced back to win the second set 6-4 and force the tiebreaker, which she lost 10-8.

Head Coach Brenda Vlasak shook up the singles ladder a little, moving sophomore Adriana Nieto up to number one, while junior Jennifer Whateley played at number two. She also rearranged the doubles teams, using different combinations for the first time this season.

At number one doubles, Catlin paired with freshman Elizabeth Tapia where they lost 8-4, Nieto and junior Jill Kappel lost a close 8-5 battle at number two and Whateley and freshman Lexi Filliol fell 8-4 at number three.

"I feel like we competed well in doubles," said Head Coach Brenda Vlasak. "We are still trying to find our true doubles combinations. I was very disappointed in our singles performance today strictly because not every player showed up to play today. There were many ups and downs within each match and I feel like we are a much better team than what we showed today."

This was the first match for the Bears in Big Sky Conference play and they move to 2-3 overall on the young season.  The Bears now hit the road for five straight matches, playing at New Mexico State on Feb. 18.

"This team has a ton of potential," said Vlasak. "It's just a matter of believing in ourselves and going out there and taking care of business."