Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
UT Martin
Patton Sends Racers into OVC Finals
4/18/2014 8:51:00 PM | Women's Tennis
Results
We've seen this script play out before. Five days earlier, actually. With the Racers needing a win against UT Martin, it was Erin Patton's win at No. 6 singles that clinched the No. 1 seed in the OVC tournament. Friday, it was Patton again against UTM whose win at No. 6 singles vaulted the Racers into the finals of the OVC Championship tournament.
Speaking about Patton, head coach Olga Elkin said, "Another great win for Erin. She played really well today. It's big to clinch, it means a lot to the girls and is a huge confidence boost for her heading into tomorrow."
The afternoon did not get off on the right foot for the Racers. UT Martin was able to draw first blood, taking two of the three doubles matches to collect the opening point.
It was at singles though, where the Racers proved why they are the top seed in the tournament. MSU quickly evened the match when All-OVC first team member Andrea Eskauriatza dispatched of Ivon Simic 6-1, 6-0. Verginie Tchakarova gave MSU their first lead, 2-1, when she won at the No. 5 draw 6-1, 6-2 over Jessica Silva.
UTM tied it back with a win at third singles, but that was short-lived. Playing up at No. 2 singles for just the third time this season, Eleonore Tchakarova squared off against OVC Freshman of the Year Hitomi Naito, in a battle of 10-0 freshman. Tchakarova dominated for the entire match, winning 6-1, 6-1.
Ahead 3-2, the Racers needed just one more singles win to extend their season. Like on Sunday, that win came from Patton – a straight set 6-4, 6-2 win over Katie McCall.
Megan Blue also played well but had little to show for it. Blue and Carla Suga were up 6-1 at third doubles before their match was called with UTM having won the doubles point. She was also ahead 6-3, 5-2 on Burcu Tari at No. 4 singles when Patton clinched the match for the Racers.
The Racers are back into the OVC finals for the first time since the 2008-09 season. That year they faced their opponent in tomorrow's final, Eastern Kentucky. The Colonels earned their trip into the finals after defeating #3 Morehead State 4-1. MSU snapped EKU's 30 match OVC winning streak earlier in the month, giving the Colonels their only conference loss on the season.
"We're looking forward to it [playing EKU]," said Elkin. That was the match my girls were most excited for this year and they wanted to play EKU again. They won the championship last year and to be the best, you have to beat the best. It's going to be very exciting. We have a lot of confidence heading into that match."
The match will once again be held in Paducah, Ky. at the Larry J. Heflin Tennis Complex. First serve is slated for 2 p.m. Admission is free for all.
Fans who cannot attend the match can follow along with the live stats and check for updates on our twitter page, @MSURacers.
