Harding University Athletics

Gabriella Alves helped win a key doubles match at No. 2 and won at No. 3 singles.

Women's Tennis 4/6/2017 9:31:00 PM by Scott Goode (4/6/17)

Doubles Sweep Leads Harding Women's Tennis to Victory at Henderson State

ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – There was a four-match stretch early in the Harding women's tennis season that the Lady Bisons lost all 12 doubles matches.

Coach David Redding and his Lady Bisons seem to have corrected all that. Harding won all three doubles matches Thursday to pave the way to a 7-2 victory over Henderson State in Great American Conference action at the Bettye Wallace Tennis Center.

Harding, ranked No. 6 in the NCAA II Central Region Rankings, has now won 16 of its last 18 doubles matches over its last six outings.

With the victory, Harding has won three straight and seven of its last eight matches. The Lady Bisons are 11-4 overall and undefeated at 3-0 in the GAC. Henderson State fell to 4-7 overall and 1-2 in conference matches.

Harding quickly took a 1-0 lead with Emily Faulkner and Milou Dalmolen winning 8-3 at No. 3 doubles. It was the fifth straight win for the duo and gave them a 9-3 record this season.

Another pair with an impressive winning streak gave the Lady Bisons a 2-0 lead. The No. 1 doubles team of Laura Golubic and Piper Huey won 8-6 for their eighth straight. Golubic and Huey are 16-4 this season. The last Harding doubles team to win 16 matches in a season was Milena Chisaca and Harding Hall of Famer Alicia Williams, who won 21 in 2007.

The No. 2 team of Gabriella Alves and Brittany Smyser led 7-5, but Henderson State's Lorraine Banimataku and Mariah Bartlett battled back to force a tiebreaker. Henderson State's team took a 5-1 lead in the tiebreaker and needed only two more points to clinch the match, but Alves and Smyser reeled off six straight points and won the tiebreaker 7-5 to give Harding a 3-0 lead.

In singles action, Alves gave Harding a 4-0 lead with a 6-1, 6-1 victory at No. 3. She improved to 10-2 in singles matches this season.

Just a few minutes later, Huey clinched the match for Harding with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Annie Shannon, the No. 11-ranked singles player in the Central Region. It was the third time in Huey's last five matches that she defeated a regionally ranked player.

With the match clinched, Harding added victories by Golubic at No. 2 and Arielle Butler at No. 5. Butler's win was her fifth straight and team-leading 16th of the season.

Harding will be back in action Saturday in a matchup of the top two teams in the GAC. Southeastern Oklahoma, 4-0 in conference, will host Harding, 3-0, at 10 a.m. in Durant, Oklahoma.

Tennis Match Results
Harding vs Henderson St.
Apr 06, 2017 at Bettye Wallace Tennis Center
(Arkadelphia, Ark.)

Harding 7, Henderson St. 2

Singles competition
1. Piper Huey (HU) def. Annie Shannon (HSU) 6-3, 6-1
2. Laura Golubic (HU) def. Thea Minor (HSU) 6-2, 6-3
3. Gabriella Alves (HU) def. Alexandra Cuello (HSU) 6-1, 6-1
4. Lorraine Banimataku (HSU) def. Brittany Smyser (HU) 6-1, 6-4
5. Arielle Butler (HU) def. Mariah Bartlett (HSU) 6-3, 6-3
6. Lauren Miller (HSU) def. Emily Faulkner (HU) 1-6, 6-3, 6-3

Doubles competition
1. Piper Huey/Laura Golubic (HU) def. Annie Shannon/Thea Minor (HSU) 8-6
2. Gabriella Alves/Brittany Smyser (HU) def. Lorraine Banimataku/Mariah Bartlett (HSU) 9-8 (7-5)
3. Emily Faulkner/Milou Dalmolen (HU) def. Maddie McRae/Lauren Miller (HSU) 8-3

Match Notes:
Harding 11-4, 3-0
Henderson St. 4-7, 1-2
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (3,1,4,2,5,6)

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Players Mentioned

Gabriella Alves: Junior

Arielle Butler: Senior

Emily Faulkner: Junior

Laura Golubic: Junior

Piper Huey: Senior

Brittany Smyser: Junior

Milou Dalmolen: 5' 4"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

Gabriella Alves
: Junior

Arielle Butler
: Senior

Emily Faulkner
: Junior

Laura Golubic
: Junior

Piper Huey
: Senior

Brittany Smyser
: Junior

Milou Dalmolen
: 5' 4"; Freshman