Women's Tennis Knocks Off No. 28 MSU

SAN ANTONIO – On the final weekend of home play, the St. Mary's Women's Tennis Team got off to a great start with a 6-1 victory over 28th-ranked Midwestern State.
 
The win moves the Rattlers into a three-way tie for first place in the Lone Star Conference standings with a 6-1 record and they are 14-3 overall. It is also the third win over a nationally-ranked foe this season.
 
Senior Marina Vigil (Gijon, Spain) and junior Gabi Ioannou (Melbourne, Australia) set the tone early for the Rattlers, winning 6-1 at No. 3 doubles. The No. 1 line of junior Angela Vargas (Del Rio, Texas) and freshman Bailey Godwin (San Antonio) clinched the point with an upset victory over the 16th-ranked duo of Hannah Yip and Anda Ghinga, 7-5. 
 
Five of the six singles bouts were decided in straight sets, with the Rattlers winning four, as well as the back-and-forth three set thriller at No. 6.
 
Senior Ashley Penshorn (Montgomery, Texas), ranked 33rd this week, took care of business with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Ghinga, who is No. 48 in singles action. Penshorn is now 2-2 against nationally ranked players and she's won her last three singles matches.
 
Senior Maria Garcia (Valencia, Spain) looked to be back close to full strength again, winning 6-3, 6-3 at No. 3 singles. She has played in four of the team's seven conference matches and is 5-3 this spring.
 
Vargas got stronger as the match went along at No. 2, winning 6-3, 6-1, clinching the team victory with the fourth point of the morning.
 
Senior Alice Thane (Elloughton, East Yorkshire, England) won the first set in a 7-5 tiebreaker and buckled down to win the second set 6-4.
 
Ioannou had her hands full the entire morning, getting broken late to drop the first set 7-5, but she knotted the match at 1-1 with a 7-3 tiebreak win in the second set and won 10-8 in the third set, using international doubles scoring.
 
The Rattlers close out the home portion of the 2022 regular season on Saturday, hosting DBU for Senior Day at 9 a.m. The celebration for the trio of seniors will happen between the women's and men's matches.