Iowa State tennis (2-6) dropped both matches of its weekend homestand, falling 4-0 to No. 74 Colorado (9-3) on Friday and 4-2 to No. 23 Texas Tech (11-3) on Sunday.
The Cyclones have now lost four straight matches after opening the season 2-2, and much of those struggles can be attributed to difficulties in securing the doubles point at the start of each matchup.
After starting 3-1 in doubles play, Iowa State has lost the doubles point in each of its last four matches.
Against Colorado on Friday, the Cyclones were quickly defeated in doubles, losing 6-1 in both the No. 1 and No. 2 matches. The No. 3 match went unfinished, though Iowa State held a 5-2 lead before it was called.
In singles, Colorado sophomore Lera Alexin defeated Iowa State’s Valeska San Martin Ramirez 6-0, 6-1 at No. 5.
The next court to finish was No. 1 singles, where sophomore Mari Paz Alberto Vilar dropped a second-set tiebreaker to graduate student Aya El Sayed, who secured the win in straight sets.
Colorado closed out Friday’s matchup with a victory at No. 4 singles by freshman Lani Brotman. After losing the first set 6-3, Iowa State junior Stanislava Shulzhenko won the second set 6-2 to force a third. Brotman claimed the match with a 6-4 win in the final set.
The No. 2, No. 3 and No. 6 singles matches went unfinished. The No. 3 and No. 6 courts were in tight third sets, while Ashlee Narker trailed 6-5 in the second set at No. 2 after winning the first.
Sunday brought an even tougher challenge as the top-25 Red Raiders came to Ames fresh off a 4-1 win at Kansas.
The Cyclones dropped another doubles point Sunday, though it was far more competitive. Narker and San Martin Ramirez won the No. 3 doubles match 6-2, but 7-5 losses at No. 1 and No. 2 gave Texas Tech the early edge.
Texas Tech then claimed quick singles victories at No. 3 and No. 6 in straight sets to move within one point of clinching the match.
Facing a 3-0 deficit, Iowa State responded with two strong singles performances. Shulzhenko won 6-1, 6-2 at No. 4, earning the Cyclones their first point of the weekend.
Sophomore Suzanie Pretorius followed with a 6-2, 6-2 win at No. 5 to cut the deficit to 3-2. Pretorius improved to 3-4 overall, including 2-2 at No. 5.
Texas Tech sealed the match at No. 1 singles. After dropping the first set 6-0, Hailey Murphy rebounded with 6-3 and 6-1 wins in the final two sets to defeat Alberto Vilar. Murphy improved to 6-2 on the season.
The No. 2 singles match went unfinished after Narker dropped the first set but led 4-3 in the second when play was stopped.
If the Cyclones hope to reverse their skid, reclaiming the doubles point would be a strong place to start. Iowa State returns to action Saturday in Lawrence, Kansas, against Kansas at 1 p.m.
