LAKE CHARLES—McNeese women's tennis played with a lot of heart and confidence in their thrilling 4-3 Southland Conference comeback win over Abilene Christian Thursday at the Nancy Hank Tennis Center.

"I'm so happy with our win today," said head coach Helena Besovic. "We played with a lot of heart and again showed that we can come together and are a team that is capable of playing great tennis. ACU played a good match but we responded back throughout the match and believed in ourselves until the last point of the match," said Besovic.

The win lifts the Cowgirls' record to 10-5 overall and 6-1 in conference play. ACU falls to 7-3 overall and 3-3 in the SLC. The win is also the fourth straight for McNeese, who has now won nine of their last 11 matches.

The Cowgirls got off to a rocky start to open the match, dropping the first two doubles by the scores of 8-6. The third doubles went unfinished to give ACU a 1-0 overall match lead.

McNeese took a 3-1 lead after the Cowgirls' won their top three singles matches. Klaudia Gawlik handed Kaysie Hermsdorf a 6-1, 6-1 defeat at the top singles slot. Julia Kral defeated Brittany Reed 7-5, 6-2 at no. 2 before Hannah Brett picked up a close 6-4, 6-3 win over Lucile Pothier at no. 3.

The Wildcats tied cut the Cowgirl lead to 3-2 with an Erin Walker 7-5, 6-1 win over Vivian Borbely at the no. 4 singles. Another win for ACU at the no. 6 slot tied the match at three apiece. Whitney Williams defeated McNeese's Anastasija Trubich 6-2, 7-5.

With all eyes on the deciding match, McNeese's Sarah Jurakova came through with a three-set 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 win over Nada Marjanovic at the no. 5 singles to claim the Cowgirl victory and extended her winning streak to four straight wins.

The Cowgirls' next matches are schedule for April 11 at Stephen F. Austin and April 12 at Northwestern State.  McNeese will conclude its regular season schedule with home matches against Southeastern La. on April 17 and New Orleans on April 19.

McNeese 4, Abilene Christian 3
Apr 02, 2015 at Lake Charles, La. (Nancy Hank Tennis Center)

Singles competition

1. Klaudia Gawlik (MCN) def. Kaysie Hermsdorf (ACU) 6-1, 6-1

2. Julia Kral (MCN) def. Brittney Reed (ACU) 7-5, 6-2

3. Hannah Brett (MCN) def. Lucile Pothier (ACU) 6-4, 6-3

4. Erin Walker (ACU) def. Vivien Borbely (MCN) 7-5, 6-1

5. Sarah Jurakova (MCN) def. Nada Marjanovic (ACU) 4-6, 6-3, 6-2

6. Whitney Williams (ACU) def. Anastasija Trubich (MCN) 6-2, 7-5

 

Doubles competition

1. Brittney Reed/Kaysie Hermsdorf (ACU) def. Klaudia Gawlik/Anastasija Trubich (MCN) 8-6

2. Erin Walker/Whitney Williams (ACU) def. Julia Kral/Hannah Brett (MCN) 8-6

3. Sarah Jurakova/Vivien Borbely (MCN) vs. Lucile Pothier/Carli Knezevich (ACU) unfinished