February 26, 2012
AUSTIN, Texas – Serving to rival St. Edward’s on the road didn’t swing in the Rattlers’ favor Saturday, but they did pick up points along the way in a 6-2 defeat.
Representing St. Mary’s (1-5) in a winning fashion on the singles’ court, Valentine Lambrechts (Jr., Belgium) met her match in St. Edward’s (3-2) Alexandra Khadzhyan but was the one to overtake the match in a three-set battle, 0-6 (7-5), 6-4, 7-6.
Angelique De Oliveria (Sr., Wattrelos, France) and Denissia Gonzalez (Fr., Houston) both matched a 6-2, 6-2 loss, while Elisha Bryant (Jr., Plano, Texas) was swinging her way to earn a point over Heather Brien to finish 4-6 in the first set but couldn’t complete the final 3-0 set due to weather.
On the doubles’ court, Bryant got her chance to fully play her game with partner Kelly Cooper (Sr., San Antonio) as they triumphed the Hilltoppers 8-6, proving the Rattler duo is becoming unstoppable. Cooper and Bryant have charged their way through their last four doubles competitions, winning four straight match points for St. Mary’s.
De Oliveira and Huong Huynh (Sr., Houston) hit strong to nearly capture another point to the Rattlers’ name but fell 9-7 to Hilltoppers Paige Rachel and Rafaela Haegele.
Putting Cooper and Bryant’s undefeated streak to the test again, the Rattlers will play again Tuesday against Collin County Community College in Plano, Texas at 10 a.m.