March 23, 2005

Cullowhee, N.C. - Freshman Ashley Harris scored Western Carolina's lone victory and senior Kristin Cotton battled to three sets in her singles match as the Catamounts fell to Chattanooga, 5-1, on Tuesday afternoon.

With rain and the threat of thunderstorms in the area, the match was moved indoors to the Hixson Racquet Center. Due to the limited court space, the teams did not compete in doubles.

Harris, who evened her seasonal singles record at 7-7, earned her first Southern Conference victory, winning 6-2, 7-5 over UTC's Emily Harpe. Playing as the number four in singles, Harris currently owns Western's best mark overall, and is tied with Cotton at 1-4 in SoCon action.

Cotton fought hard before falling to Chattanooga's Bethany Everett at number three, winning the opening set, 7-6. However, Everett took the second set 6-4, and finished the match off with a 6-2 tally.

Western Carolina (4-10, 0-5 SoCon) has over a week off before it takes to the courts again. The Catamounts are not scheduled to play again until visiting East Tennessee State on Saturday, April 2 at 1:00 pm

Chattanooga 5, Western Carolina 1

Doubles:
Did not play due to limited indoor court space

Singles:
1. Lindsey Ballard (UTC) def. Trish Hanson (WCU) 6-1, 6-1
2. Kristie Wilson (UTC) def. Katherine Ptak (WCU) 6-1, 6-1
3. Bethany Everett (UTC) def. Kristin Cotton (WCU) 6-7, 6-4, 6-2
4. Ashley Harris (WCU) def. Emily Harpe (UTC) 6-2, 7-5
5. Bonnie Adams (UTC) def. Susanna Sjokvist (WCU) 6-2, 6-1
6. Christy Fazio (UTC) def. April Yount (WCU) 6-0, 6-1

Records:
Western Carolina - (4-10, 0-5 SoCon)
Chattanooga - (1-14, 1-7 SoCon)