Klempner Helps in Victory Over No. 58 Boise State

PROVO -- The 66th ranked BYU women's tennis team got back on a winning track Friday against No. 58 Boise State by edging the Broncos 4-3. The victory for the Cougars marks only the third loss for BSU this season and the first victory for BYU in their last seven attempts.

"I'm so proud of the girls today," said BYU head coach Craig Manning. "We've been playing tough all year but we just haven't been getting the wins like we would like. We've had so many 4-3 losses, it's nice to finally be on the winning side of that score."

The match got off to a start with BYU claiming the doubles point by winning two of the three doubles matches. BYU seniors Dominique Reynolds and Liza Klempner teamed up at the No. 1 spot to beat Jemima Hayward and Erin Polowski 8-5. Rebecca Pike and Olga Boulytcheva were the other Cougar tandem to win, defeating Carolina Pongratz and Anna Curtolo 9-7 in a hard-fought match at No. 3.

"Doubles was the key for us today," said Manning. "We wouldn't have won this match if it weren't for our winning the doubles point. We played fantastic doubles today."

In singles, the Broncos came back strong and gave the Cougars a run. But BYU held on to steal the match from BSU. Klempner, after losing the first set 2-6, was able to fight back and win the next two sets 6-3, 6-4 to beat Renate Stoop at No. 1 singles. Stoop is currently ranked 66th among all collegiate tennis players.

"Liza played great for us today," said Manning. "She got down but was able to fight back and come up with a big win over a very good player. She really came up with a big win for us today."

The match was knotted at 3-3 and came down to the match at the No. 6 spot. But Macfarlane won a hard-fought three-set match over Pongratz, 7-5, 5-7, 6-3.

"We have been playing ranked teams all year," said Manning. "It's nice to get a win over such a good team. I wanted to get a win today so that the girls could see that all their hard work is paying off."

The Cougars have little time to rest as they will be back in action tomorrow (Saturday, March 22) against No. 38 South Carolina in Provo at noon.

No. 66 BYU def. No. 58 Boise State
Doubles
1. Reynolds/ Klempner (BYU) def. Hayward/Polowski (BSU)		8-5
2. Stoop/Ayling (BSU) def. MacFarlane/Schneider (BYU) 		 8-2
3. Pike/Boulytcheva (BYU) def. Pongrontz/Curtolo (BSU)		 9-7
Singles
1. Liza Klempner (BYU) def. Renate Stoop (BSU)			        2-6, 6-3, 6-4
2. Jemima Hayward (BSU) def. Dominique Reynolds (BYU)		  6-4, 6-1
3. Erin Polowski (BSU) def. Olga Boulytcheva (BYU)			    6-4, 6-1
4. Rebecca Pike (BYU) def. Alissa Ayling (BSU)			        6-2, 3-6, 6-2
5. Anna Curtolo (BSU) def. Tarah Porter (BYU)			         6-0, 3-6, 6-3
6. Hadley MacFarlane (BYU) def. Carolina Pongratz (BSU)		7-5, 5-7, 6-3

PROVO -- The No. 66 BYU women's tennis team (4-8) will be in action this Friday as they host No. 58 Boise State (10-2) at noon. The match will be played outside and the No. 1 doubles and No. 1 singles matches will be televised live on BYU-TV and on a tape delay on KBYU at midnight of the same day.

The Cougars come into the match after a tough loss to No. 11 Tennessee on Tuesday. The Lady Volunteers blanked the Cougars 7-0. But BYU head coach Craig Manning feels good about his team and the progress they are making.

"Everyone is playing pretty good right now. Our good play just isn't being seen in the final results," said Manning. "But I've been telling the team all year that the better the opponents you compete against, the better you are going to be."

Boise State currently has a record of 10-2. The Broncos come into the match having won the last two matches. They beat Weber State 7-0 before taking care of Montana 6-1.

"We have been playing Boise State for many years now," said Manning. "They always have a great team and they are always ready to play. But I know that our team will also be ready to play tough. We just need to focus on every match and play as hard as we have been all year. I expect a tough match."

The Broncos will be led by senior Renate Stoop. She is currently ranked 66th among all collegiate tennis players and has an overall record in 2002-03 of 21-7.

The Cougars have been led all season by seniors Dominique Reynolds and Elizaveta Klempner. The two have teamed up together at the No. 1 doubles spot to achieve a record of 7-5. Reynolds plays at the No. 1 singles position and has a current record of 12-11 (4-8 in dual match play). Klempner has played all year at the No. 2 spot and has a record of 6-10 (4-8 in dual match play).

After today's match with BSU, the Cougars will be in action once again on Saturday as they host No. 38 South Carolina. The match will begin at noon and will be played outdoors.