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Feb. 28, 2010

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.— The No. 35 Oklahoma women’s tennis team lost its first match of the season Sunday, falling to No. 20 Arkansas on the road, 6-1.

Oklahoma (7-1, 0-0 Big 12) fell behind after losing its first doubles point this season and couldn’t recover as the Razorbacks quickly took over the next four singles points.

"We simply got outplayed today and lost to a better team," OU head coach David Mullins said. "We had match-points to win the doubles point but Arkansas came up with the shots when they needed them."

Despite the loss, the Sooners’ 7-1 season start is tied for the fourth-best start after eight matches in the program’s 35 seasons. 

Katelyn Connelly and Marie-Pier Huet picked up OU’s only win in doubles.  The Sooners duo defeated Arkansas’ Stephanie Roy and Valentina Starkova at the No. 3 position, 9-7. 

OU narrowly missed the doubles point as No. 29-ranked Ana-Maria Constantinescu and Teona Tsertsvadze fell to Anouk Tigu and Claudine Paulson at the No. 1 spot, 9-7.

Arkansas won the next four points quickly, claiming singles wins at the No. 2, 3, 4 and 5 positions. 

"In singles play Arkansas really stepped up and showed us why they are considered one of the best teams in the country," Mullins said.

OU’s Tara Eckel earned the Sooners’ only dual point on the day, topping Paulson at the No. 6 position, 6-4, 6-1.  Eckel is undefeated in singles play this season. 

Constantinescu lost a hard-fought battle at the No. 1 position in the day’s last match.  No. 76-ranked Constantinescu fell to Arkansas’ Tigu, 7-6, 7-6.

The Sooners return home on March 5 to take on Wichita State at 4 p.m. at the Gregg Wadley Indoor Tennis Pavilion.

No. 20 Arkansas 6, No. 35 Oklahoma 1
Doubles
1. Tigu/Paulson (ARK) def. No. 29 Constantinescu/Tsertsvadze (OU), 9-7
2. Lukomskaya/Sundaram (ARK) def. Kalashnikova/Eckel (OU), 8-0
3. Connelly/Huet (OU) def. Roy/Starkova (ARK), 9-7
Order of Finish: 2, 3, 1

Singles
1. Anouk Tigu (ARK) def. Ana-Maria Constantinescu (OU), 7-6(1), 7-6(6)
2. Kate Lukomskaya (ARK) def. Marie-Pier Huet (OU), 6-1, 6-2
3. Emily Carbone (ARK) def. Maria Kalashnikova (OU), 6-4, 6-2
4. Stephanie Roy (ARK) def. Teona Tsertsvadze (OU), 6-0, 6-2
5. Kelsey Sundaram (ARK) def. Kristina Radan (OU), 6-0, 6-4
6. Tara Eckel (OU) def. Claudine Paulson (ARK), 6-4, 6-1
Order of Finish: 4, 2, 3, 6, 5, 1