Completed Event: Women's Tennis versus #27 South Carolina on March 27, 2026 , Win , 4, to, 0
Final
Women's Tennis
4
vs #27 South Carolina
0
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University of Oklahoma Athletics
Friday, May 8
Nashville, Tenn.
12:00 PM
University of Oklahoma
4
vs
3
Ohio State
Sooners Upset Ohio State at NCAA Regional
May 08, 2015 | Women's Tennis
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The third-seeded and 42nd-ranked Oklahoma women's tennis team upset the second-seeded and 18th-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament Friday via a 4-3 decision in Nashville, Tenn. With the win, the Sooners advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in school history and the third time under head coach David Mullins.
“I'm really proud of this team today,” said Mullins. “I'm so happy for them as I knew they had the potential to pull this off. They also showed a lot of resilience and did not make any excuses after some crazy travel to get here.”
The Sooners took the doubles point and lead 1-0 after comebacks at No. 2 and No. 3. At No. 3, senior Abbi Melrose and freshman Christiana Brigante fell behind 4-3 before winning five of the final seven games to defeat Anna Sanford and Olivia Sneed.
Junior Emma Devine and freshman Malene Stripp raced out to a 3-1 lead before giving up five unanswered games to fall behind 6-3 at the No. 2 position. The duo then took the next five games to clinch their match against Miho Kowase and Ferny Angeles Paz and the doubles point for OU.
The freshman pair of Lily Miyazaki and Simran Sethi fell to the 44th-ranked Gabriella De Santis and Sandy Niehaus by an 8-4 decision.
In singles, Ohio State controlled the bottom of the lineup with convincing wins at No. 5 and No. 6 to earn their first two points. Devine lost to Grainne O'Neill by a 6-2, 6-2 decision at No. 6, while Stripp fell to Miho Kowase 6-1, 6-3.
The Sooners tied the match at 2-2 behind a fantastic second set at No. 2 singles by Sethi. She defeated Anna Sanford 7-5, 6-1.
At No. 1, Miyazaki suffered just her fifth loss of the spring, dropping a 7-5, 6-4 decision to Gabriella De Santis to give the Buckeyes a 3-2 lead. Miyazaki holds a 15-5 record in dual play.
Melrose evened the match at No. 3, rebounding from being shutout in her second set to win by a score of 7-5, 0-6, 6-4. The win puts Melrose above .500 for the season in singles, earning her a 9-8 record.
It all came down to Brigante at No. 4. After losing a very difficult first set to Angeles Paz by a score of 6-1, Brigante responded and forced a third set with a 6-3 win in the second set. After Brigante held leads of 4-2 and 5-3, Angeles Paz tied the third set at 5-5. However, Brigante won the final two games to clinch the match by a score of 1-6, 6-3, 7-5.
“I felt like we were starting to recalibrate as a team at Big 12's and learning to play without Morgan and Zita,” said Mullins. “We definitely came together as a team today to pull off the upset.”
Results
Doubles
1. #44 Gabriella De Santis/Sandy Niehaus (OSU) def. Miyazaki/Sethi (OU) 8-4
2. Devine/Stripp (OU) def. Miho Kowase/Ferny Angeles Paz (OSU) 8-6
3. Melrose/Brigante (OU) def. Anna Sanford/Olivia Sneed (OSU) 8-6
Singles
1. Gabriella De Santis (OSU) def. Lily Miyazaki (OUW) 7-5, 6-4
2. Simran Sethi (OU) def. Anna Sanford (OSU) 7-5, 6-1
3. Abbi Melrose (OU) def. Sandy Niehaus (OSU) 7-5, 0-6, 6-4
4. Christina Brigante (OU) def. Ferny Angeles Paz (OSU) 1-6, 6-3, 7-5
5. Miho Kowase (OSU) def. Malene Stripp (OU) 6-1, 6-3
6. Grainne O'Neill (OSU) def. Emma Devine (OU) 6-2, 6-2
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3,2); Singles (6,5,2,1,3,4)
Up Next
The Sooners will play Vanderbilt in the second round of the NCAA Tournament Saturday at noon CT in Nashville, Tenn.
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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