Liberty Knocks Off Texas State 4-0

Liberty knocked off Texas State 4-0, Wednesday afternoon at the Bobcat Tennis Complex to close out its time in the Lone Star State.

With the win, Liberty improves to 11-4 on the year and has won three straight matches, all on the road. The Lady Flames also defeated UTSA by the same 4-0 score, Sunday in San Antonio.

Texas State sees its record fall to 4-8. Wednesday's contest was the fist-ever dual match between the Lady Flames and Bobcats. Liberty is 9-1 over its last 10 matches.

Esther Lovato, who hails from Austin, Texas, won her singles match today to reach 60 career singles victories. Lovato is the ninth player in program history with 60 or more career singles wins.

Thoughts From Head Coach Jeff Maren

"We faced a very tough team today and had to battle on every court. The girls to the occasion and played with a lot of grit and mental toughness. These matches continue to prepare us for future contests. To God be the glory!"

Thoughts From Tiffany Nguyen

"When love is what glues us together, not a long of things can defeat us. Adversity is a privilege. Praise God for all of our success."

Liberty 4, Texas State 0

Singles Competition

1. Kvapilova, Hana (TXST) vs. M. Juliana P. Romero (LIBERTYW) 6-7 (2-7), 1-2, unfinished
2. Malazonia, Kate (TXST) vs. Alexandra Almborg (LIBERTYW) 5-7, 2-2, unfinished
3. McCutcheon, Mae (TXST) vs. Eloise Saraty (LIBERTYW) 5-7, 4-4, unfinished
4. Esther Lovato (LIBERTYW) def. Lora, Maria (TXST) 6-0, 6-0
5. Tiffany Nguyen (LIBERTYW) def. Chan, Jadeh (TXST) 6-2, 6-4
6. Micaela Ode Mitre (LIBERTYW) def. Shannon, Kylee (TXST) 7-6 (7-2), 6-0

Doubles Competition

1. Kvapilova, Hana/Malazonia, Kate (TXST) vs. Tiffany Nguyen/M. Juliana P. Romero (LIBERTYW) 6-6, unfinished
2. Eloise Saraty/Willa Rogers (LIBERTYW) def. McCutcheon, Mae/Chan, Jadeh (TXST) 6-1
3. Kalani Soli/Esther Lovato (LIBERTYW) def. Shannon, Kylee/Fortuno, Sofia (TXST) 7-5

Liberty 11-4

Texas State 4-8

Order of finish: Doubles (2,3); Singles (4,6,5)

T-2:30

How It Happened

• Liberty won the doubles point with victories on court two and three and secured the overall victory with singles wins at No. 4, No. 6 and No. 5 singles, in that order.

• The Lady Flames' Eloise Saraty and Willa Rogers improved to 3-0 as a team, including a 2-0 mark in the No. 2 slot, after besting the Bobcats' Mae Cutcheon and Jadeh Chan 6-1.

• Liberty put the first point of the match on the board following a 7-5 victory from Kalani Soli and Esther Lovato against Texas State's Kylee Shannon and Sofia Fortuno.

• Playing in her home state, Lovato did not surrender a game, winning 6-0, 6-0 over Maria Lora on court four. Lovato's result boosted the visitors' lead to 2-0.

• Lovato is 60-10 in singles during her Liberty career for a .857 winning percentage, the best mark in program history. She is 26-2 all-time in the No. 4 singles slot. Lovato leads the Lady Flames with 10 victories this spring against only two setbacks.|

• Liberty's Micaela Ode Mitre (No. 6 singles) and Tiffany Nguyen (No. 5 singles) continued their strong play during the spring campaign, earning victories to secure the outcome of the match. Ode Mitre upended Shannon 7-6 (2), 6-0, followed by Nguyen's 6-2, 6-4 result versus Chan.

• Ode Mitre's victory brings her to 6-2 in the spring, including a 6-1 mark in the No. 6 slot. Meanwhile, Nguyen is undefeated (6-0) in the No. 5 position, is 6-1 overall in the spring and has captured six straight matches.

• The Lady Flames' top three singles players – Maria Juliana Parra Romero (No. 1) Alexandra Almborg (No. 2) and Saraty (No. 3) – each won first sets against their opponents before their matches went unfinished in the second set.

• Nguyen's victory put a stop to the other singles matches still in progress, as it provided Liberty the fourth point of the match.

• The Lady Flames have outscored their counterparts 39-14 over their last 10 matches (9-1 record). This is Liberty's third 4-0 win during that span.

• Liberty is 4-2 in true road matches in 2022.

• This is the second straight year in which Liberty has opened the season at 11-4 or better through 15 matches. In 2021, the Lady Flames held a 12-3 mark through 15 matches.

Next Up

• Liberty will open ASUN play at Kennesaw State (10-1), Friday afternoon. Match time between the Lady Flames and Owls is 1 p.m. at the Betty Siegel Courts in Kennesaw, Ga.

• This will be the second all-time meeting between the two squads. Liberty swept KSU 7-0 in 2019, the Lady Flames' first-ever ASUN win.