Saturday, February 27
BOZEMAN
10 a.m.
Montana State University
2
vs
5
Idaho State
Laura Mary
Photo by: Derek Johnson
Senior Laura Mary, Freshman Felicia Jayasaputra Earn Singles Wins for MSU in Home-Opening Loss
2/27/2021 3:58:00 PM | Women's Tennis
Montana State falls 5-2 to Idaho State
February 27, 2021 – BOZEMAN, Montana – Montana State dropped its women's tennis home opener to Idaho State on Saturday, but got a reliable performance at No. 1 singles and another positive from a freshman at No. 5.
In beating the Bobcats 5-2, Idaho State narrowly won the doubles point and took four of the six singles matches. But MSU senior Laura Mary earned a solid 6-4, 6-0 win over Hristina Cvetkovic, while freshman Felicia Jayasaputra took a 6-2, 6-2 win over Angela Walker at No. 5.
"Laura Mary, as she has often in her career, took care of things right away," said Bobcat coach Jon Reeves. Mary also teamed with Jazmin Lerman to win 6-4 at No. 1 singles. "Laura's one of the best players in the Big Sky by far, and has been for a number of years."
While Mary's win was impressive but not unexpected, Jayasaputra's victory came on the heels of season-opening losses playing No. 5 singles at Gonzaga two weeks ago and No. 6 at Washington State. Reeves said the progress made after Jayasaputra's initial welcome-to-Division I moment impressed him.
"Felicia was fantastic," he said. "That's a huge jump for her from the scared-to-death initial freshman weekend, and (Saturday) she decided, OK, it's time to be over that. I saw it a little bit in her this week, we just kind of saw a change in her during practice, so it's super exciting to see her come out and bring that level. The player you saw today is the player we recruited, and that's why she's here. She can dictate points and she's a tough little competitor."
Reeves attributed the rust he saw from the rest of the squad is understandable. Montana State was deprived a fall season, and the team featuring just two seniors took a while to find its traction. "Mid-lineup we have to do some work," he said, "and I think a lot of it is we're not match-tough yet. That's a big issue for us. We didn't have a fall, and on top of that we're jumping right in and we don't have many matches to play around with. We have to learn quick."
Freshman Mirte Van Baelen performed well at No. 2 singles, fighting ISU's Hana Cho in a 7-5, 3-6, 1-6 loss. "Mirte at No. 2, that's a big jump for her because last year she was playing four as a true freshman," Reeves said. "She's really starting to step up and understand what the level is at No. 2. It's a different form of pressure. The kids playing there, it's not easy, they're always hanging around at the top couple of (ladder) spots. But she's really playing better. It's frustrating for her because she'd like to have that win and play just a little bit better, but the opportunities are there for her."
Reeves said he saw plenty of opportunities up and down the lineup, and in doubles, and expects his team to take advantage of those with more match experience. "Definitely," he said. "It's one of those things where the biggest thing we lacked today was taking care of our opportunities. Two weeks ago we weren't necessarily getting those opportunities, not consistently, but today there were opportunities there. It's just a matter of executing."
Montana State's next opportunity is a big one, as the Bobcats face Montana on Sunday in Missoula. The Cats and Grizzlies get together for a conference match at 1:30 pm at the PEAK Racquet Club. "We've got to be ready to play," Reeves said. "Montana played well (Friday), they beat this (Idaho State) team 5-2. Cat-Griz is always fun. We have a history of it being 4-3, so we're excited about it and I think the girls will bring another level tomorrow."
Idaho State 5, Montana State 2
February 27, 2021 at Bozeman, Montana (Bobcat-Anderson Tennis Center)
Singles competition
1. MARY, Laura (MSU-W) def. Hristina Cvetkovic (ISU) 6-4, 6-0
2. Hana Cho (ISU) def. VAN BAELEN, Mirte (MSU-W) 5-7, 6-3, 6-1
3. Sol O'Lideadha (ISU) def. LERMAN, Jazmin (MSU-W) 6-1, 6-2
4. Megan Lang-Gould (ISU) def. CHEN, JJ (MSU-W) 6-3, 6-2
5. JAYASAPUTRA, Felicia (MSU-W) def. Angela Walker (ISU) 6-2, 6-2
6. Lola O'Lideadha (ISU) def. ZANDER, Enni (MSU-W) 6-1, 6-3
Doubles competition
1. MARY, Laura/LERMAN, Jazmin (MSU-W) def. Hristina Cvetkovic/Hana Cho (ISU) 6-4
2. Angela Walker/Alexandra Arkhipov (ISU) def. VAN BAELEN, Mirte/ZANDER, Enni (MSU-W) 7-6 (7-5)
3. Sol O'Lideadha/Lola O'Lideadha (ISU) def. CHEN, JJ/BUIJSEN, Evi (MSU-W) 6-3
Records: Idaho State 5-3, Montana State 0-3
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (1,4,3,2,5,6)
#GoCatsGo
In beating the Bobcats 5-2, Idaho State narrowly won the doubles point and took four of the six singles matches. But MSU senior Laura Mary earned a solid 6-4, 6-0 win over Hristina Cvetkovic, while freshman Felicia Jayasaputra took a 6-2, 6-2 win over Angela Walker at No. 5.
"Laura Mary, as she has often in her career, took care of things right away," said Bobcat coach Jon Reeves. Mary also teamed with Jazmin Lerman to win 6-4 at No. 1 singles. "Laura's one of the best players in the Big Sky by far, and has been for a number of years."
While Mary's win was impressive but not unexpected, Jayasaputra's victory came on the heels of season-opening losses playing No. 5 singles at Gonzaga two weeks ago and No. 6 at Washington State. Reeves said the progress made after Jayasaputra's initial welcome-to-Division I moment impressed him.
"Felicia was fantastic," he said. "That's a huge jump for her from the scared-to-death initial freshman weekend, and (Saturday) she decided, OK, it's time to be over that. I saw it a little bit in her this week, we just kind of saw a change in her during practice, so it's super exciting to see her come out and bring that level. The player you saw today is the player we recruited, and that's why she's here. She can dictate points and she's a tough little competitor."
Reeves attributed the rust he saw from the rest of the squad is understandable. Montana State was deprived a fall season, and the team featuring just two seniors took a while to find its traction. "Mid-lineup we have to do some work," he said, "and I think a lot of it is we're not match-tough yet. That's a big issue for us. We didn't have a fall, and on top of that we're jumping right in and we don't have many matches to play around with. We have to learn quick."
Freshman Mirte Van Baelen performed well at No. 2 singles, fighting ISU's Hana Cho in a 7-5, 3-6, 1-6 loss. "Mirte at No. 2, that's a big jump for her because last year she was playing four as a true freshman," Reeves said. "She's really starting to step up and understand what the level is at No. 2. It's a different form of pressure. The kids playing there, it's not easy, they're always hanging around at the top couple of (ladder) spots. But she's really playing better. It's frustrating for her because she'd like to have that win and play just a little bit better, but the opportunities are there for her."
Reeves said he saw plenty of opportunities up and down the lineup, and in doubles, and expects his team to take advantage of those with more match experience. "Definitely," he said. "It's one of those things where the biggest thing we lacked today was taking care of our opportunities. Two weeks ago we weren't necessarily getting those opportunities, not consistently, but today there were opportunities there. It's just a matter of executing."
Montana State's next opportunity is a big one, as the Bobcats face Montana on Sunday in Missoula. The Cats and Grizzlies get together for a conference match at 1:30 pm at the PEAK Racquet Club. "We've got to be ready to play," Reeves said. "Montana played well (Friday), they beat this (Idaho State) team 5-2. Cat-Griz is always fun. We have a history of it being 4-3, so we're excited about it and I think the girls will bring another level tomorrow."
Idaho State 5, Montana State 2
February 27, 2021 at Bozeman, Montana (Bobcat-Anderson Tennis Center)
Singles competition
1. MARY, Laura (MSU-W) def. Hristina Cvetkovic (ISU) 6-4, 6-0
2. Hana Cho (ISU) def. VAN BAELEN, Mirte (MSU-W) 5-7, 6-3, 6-1
3. Sol O'Lideadha (ISU) def. LERMAN, Jazmin (MSU-W) 6-1, 6-2
4. Megan Lang-Gould (ISU) def. CHEN, JJ (MSU-W) 6-3, 6-2
5. JAYASAPUTRA, Felicia (MSU-W) def. Angela Walker (ISU) 6-2, 6-2
6. Lola O'Lideadha (ISU) def. ZANDER, Enni (MSU-W) 6-1, 6-3
Doubles competition
1. MARY, Laura/LERMAN, Jazmin (MSU-W) def. Hristina Cvetkovic/Hana Cho (ISU) 6-4
2. Angela Walker/Alexandra Arkhipov (ISU) def. VAN BAELEN, Mirte/ZANDER, Enni (MSU-W) 7-6 (7-5)
3. Sol O'Lideadha/Lola O'Lideadha (ISU) def. CHEN, JJ/BUIJSEN, Evi (MSU-W) 6-3
Records: Idaho State 5-3, Montana State 0-3
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (1,4,3,2,5,6)
#GoCatsGo
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
3,1,2
#1 Singles Match
12
Hristina Cvetkovic / 0 [ISU]
40
66
#2 Singles Match
123
Hana Cho / 0 [ISU]
566
731
#3 Singles Match
12
Sol O'Lideadha / 0 [ISU]
66
12
#4 Singles Match
12
Megan Lang-Gould / 0 [ISU]
66
32
#5 Singles Match
12
Angela Walker / 0 [ISU]
22
66
#6 Singles Match
12
Lola O'Lideadha / 0 [ISU]
66
13
Order of Finish:
1,4,3,2,5,6
Players Mentioned
S/D
/ Women's Tennis
S/D
/ Women's Tennis
S/D
/ Women's Tennis
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