Kennesaw, Ga. – Western Carolina nearly pulled off its second-straight win despite falling in the doubles point on Sunday afternoon but dropped its women's tennis road matchup at Kennesaw State, 5-2. WCU is now 6-7 on the year while the Owls hold a 3-4 record.
Angela Perez and Madison Schwarz opened the day with a 6-0 win on the doubles third court for the Catamounts, giving WCU a chance to take the critical early point. Andrea Redondo and Isabella Sambola dropped their matchup 6-2 on the second court, while Jade Groen and Chloe Schwarz battled before falling in a hard-fought 7-6 decision on court No. 1 as the Owls took the 1-0 lead headed to singles play.
Both Groen and Schwarz rallied on the singles court as the two gave the Catamounts their only points on the day as the top and No. 3 seeds. Groen claimed her match 6-2, 6-3 with Schwarz finishing with a 7-6, 2-6, 6-1 win. Groen's victory was her eighth of the season and her seventh on the top court as she's won her last five decisions – and seven of her last eight in the top spot.
Schwarz leads the Catamounts in singles win percentage so far this season, compiling a 6-1 record exclusively on the third court. Her last three singles battles have gone the distance, with the Australian junior winning two of those matches.
Angela Perez and freshman Hokualohi Lui also battled in three-set matches on Sunday but fell in tightly contested battles. After falling 6-0 to open the match, Perez rallied to take a 6-4 win in set two, forcing the third where she fell 6-4 as Laura Nadaska clinched the match for KSU. Lui took a strong 6-2 set one win to open her singles match but fell 6-4 and 7-6 in the final singles decision of the day.
Madison Schwarz returned to the singles lineup for her first appearance since the meeting with rival Appalachian State. Schwarz pushed on the fourth court but fell 7-6, 6-2 to KSU's Izabella Persson.
Up Next for the Catamounts:
WCU (6-7) has a bit of a reprieve after a three-match week before taking to the beach for spring break as they face FDU (March 10), Lamar (March 12), and Fairfield (March 13) in neutral court action in Orlando, Fla.
