Michigan
Texas
Michigan Outlasts Texas, Punches Ticket to NCAA Quarters
5/10/2025 6:19:00 PM | Women's Tennis
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Varsity Tennis Center)
Event: NCAA Tournament (Super Regional)
Score: #3 Michigan 4, #14 Texas 3
Records: U-M (26-4), UT (18-10)
Next U-M Event: Thursday, May 15 -- vs. #20 Oklahoma State - NCAA Quarterfinals (Waco, Texas), TBD
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 3-ranked University of Michigan women's tennis team outlasted No. 14 Texas, winning four singles matches after dropping the doubles point to punch its ticket to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament behind a 4-3 win on Saturday afternoon (May 10) at the Varsity Tennis Center.
Needing to win the final two matches on court after Texas took a 3-2 lead, Michigan had Julia Fliegner at No. 1 and Lily Jones at No. 3 left on court. Both players had match points in their second sets but could not convert, allowing Texas to win at No. 5 for a 3-2 lead.
With third sets starting on the two courts, Jones was broken in her first service game to fall behind 1-0. She recovered from there, ripping off six straight games in the final set for a 6-4, 5-7, 6-1 win over No. 73 Eszter Meri. Jones used a late break in the first set to get the win and held a 5-3 lead in the second. Meri won the final four games of the second set, extending the match to a third before Jones pulled through for Michigan's third point of the day.
Attention turned to court No. 1, where Fliegner was on serve at 3-2. With Sabina Zeynalova back to serve in the next game, the Longhorn began to cramp and was forced to serve underhand. She held her serve and took an extended medical timeout at 3-3. Fliegner was broken in the next game but immediately returned the favor. Both players held their serve over the final four games, highlighted by Fliegner rallying from a 0-40 deficit to hold at 6-5.
Following a final hold from Zeynalova to tie the final set at 6-6, the last match on court headed to a tiebreaker. Fliegner won the first two points of the breaker before Texas got on the board at 2-1. It was all Fliegner from there as she ran off five straight points for the 7-1 win for Michigan's fourth point of the afternoon.
Texas took the early lead, winning the doubles point behind wins at No. 3 and No. 1.
Michigan weathered a few slow starts in singles, eventually taking four first sets when needing to win four singles matches for the win.
Piper Charney wasted little time pulling Michigan level at 1-1 with a 6-0, 6-2 win at No. 2. After the shutout win in the first set, Charney went up 3-1 in the second and did not look back in her 35th win of the season.
Michigan's lead was short-lived as Texas responded with a straight-set win at No. 6 to regain a 2-1 lead.
Emily Sartz-Lunde quickly followed with a 6-1, 6-2 win over No. 92 Ashton Bowers at No. 4 to again pull Michigan level at 2-2. She broke at 2-1 in the first and consolidated the break in the next game en route to the first-set win. Sartz-Lunde went up 3-1 in the second, but Bowers answered with a break to get back on serve in the next game. The Big Ten Freshman of the Year did not drop a game after that, getting off court with Michigan's second point of the match.
Both Jones and Fliegner had match points in their respective second sets after going up 5-3 but could not convert them, which allowed Texas to get its third point behind a three-set win at No. 5 to set up the final sequence.
Michigan will face No. 20 Oklahoma State in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday (May 15) in Waco, Texas. It is Michigan's third straight trip to the quarters and fourth in program history.
Following are match-by-match results
Singles
No. 1 -- No. 6 Julia Fliegner (U-M) d. No. 45 Sabina Zeynalova (Texas), 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (1)
No. 2 -- No. 21 Piper Charney (U-M) d. No. 38 Carmen Herea (Texas), 6-0, 6-2
No. 3 -- No. 46 Lily Jones (U-M) d. No. 73 Eszter Meri (Texas), 6-4, 5-7, 6-1
No. 4 -- No. 68 Emily Sartz-Lunde (U-M) d. No. 92 Ashton Bowers (Texas), 6-1, 6-2
No. 5 -- Charlotte Kempenaers-Pocz (Texas) d. Reese Miller (U-M), 4-6, 6-1, 6-3
No. 6 -- No. 78 Ariana Anazagasty-Pursoo (Texas) d. Jessica Bernales (U-M), 6-1, 6-3
Doubles
No. 1 -- No. 26 Ariana Anazagasty-Pursoo/Ashton Bowers (Texas) d. No. 18 Lily Jones/Jessica Bernales (U-M), 7-5
No. 2 -- No. 45 Julia Fliegner/Reese Miller (U-M) d. No. 73 Charlotte Kempenaers-Pocz/Salma Drugdova (Texas), 6-3
No. 3 -- Sabina Zeynalova/Carmen Herea (Texas) d. Piper Charney/Emily Sartz-Lunde (U-M), 6-4
Order of Completion: Doubles 2-3-1, Singles 2-6-4-5-3-1
Players Mentioned
