Aggie women’s tennis rallies past Abilene Christian

The NM State women’s team secured a thrilling 4-3 victory over Abilene Christian Sunday, Mar. 1 at the NM State Tennis Center, overcoming an early deficit to claim its first home win of the spring season. The Aggies captured four singles matches, including three gritty three-set victories, to seal the comeback triumph. 

The Wildcats opened the match by taking the doubles point, despite strong efforts from NMSU. Dora Kurdi and Whitney Moon earned a 6-4 win at the No. 3 position, while Montana Parkinson-Lubold and Anna Klimova battled to a 7-6 victory at No. 2 doubles. However, Abilene Christian claimed courts one and two to secure the early 1-0 lead. 

NM State responded in singles with resilience across the lineup. At the top spot, Whitney Moon delivered a statement performance, rallying after a first-set tiebreak loss to defeat Masha Vrsalovic 6-7, 6-1, 6-2 and even the team score. 

Montana Parkinson-Lubold continued the momentum at No. 3 singles, claiming a 6-2 first set before closing out a tightly contested three-set battle, 6-2, 5-7, 6-4. Anna Klimova also fought back after dropping her opening set at No. 6, responding with back-to-back 6-4 and 6-0 set wins to give the Aggies a crucial point late in the match. 

The decisive point came from the depth of the lineup, as the Aggies outlasted the Wildcats in multiple extended matches to clinch the 4-3 team victory. Despite hard-fought efforts from Anna Pinaieva, Emma Petton and Nadia Nemeth in three-set contests, NMSU’s resilience at key moments proved to be the difference. 
NM State will head on the road later this week as the Aggies gear up for Utah Tech on Mar. 5 in St. George, Utah.