Sooner Magic Sends OU To Final Four

²Oklahoma

⁷Texas A&M

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — For the first time in program history, the No. 2 Oklahoma women's tennis team is headed to the NCAA Final Four after its 4-3 come-from-behind win over No. 7 Texas A&M in Friday's national quarterfinals.

The Sooners claimed the doubles point to open the match. No. 10 Ivana and Carmen Corley took the quick 6-3 top-court win over No. 6 Tatiana Makarova and Jayci Goldsmith, delivering the duo's third loss of the season.

The Aggies picked up the win on court two as No. 47 Carson Branstine and Mary Stoiana downed Layne Sleeth and Alexandra Pisareva 6-3.

With the doubles point up for grabs, OU's Dana Guzman and Emma Staker tied the court-three battle at 5-5 before posting a 7-5 win against Renee McBryde and Gianna Pelet.

OU went into singles play with the 1-0 lead, but Texas A&M grabbed the first two singles wins. No. 74 Mary Stoiana earned a victory on court three, defeating No. 97 Ivana Corley 6-2, 6-1. Then Goldsmith posted a 6-4, 6-2 win over Guzman on court four.

The Sooners bounced back to tie the match 2-2 with a top-court win from No. 10 Sleeth, taking down No. 8 Branstine 6-2, 6-3. It was Sleeth's sixth win against a player ranked in the top 30 this season.

A&M regained the lead, though, when Gianna Pielet defeated Pisareva 6-2, 6-3 at the No. 5 spot.

Carmen Corley kept OU's season alive when she posted a three-set win over No. 24 Makarova. Corley dropped the first set 3-6 but bounced back in a big way with 6-2 and 6-3 wins in the second and third sets, respectively, to tie the match at 3-3. It was her fourth win against a player in the top 30.

With a trip to the Final Four on the line, the focus shifted to court six, where freshman Staker lost the first set 3-6 to Jeanette Mireles but battled hard to claim a 6-3 second-set victory. Staker carried her momentum to the third set and prevailed 6-4 before she was mobbed by teammates.

UP NEXT

The Sooners will face No. 3 Duke in the national semifinals Saturday at 7 p.m. CT in Champaign, Ill. OU won 4-2 at Duke on Jan. 30.

RESULTS

#2 Oklahoma 4, #7 Texas A&M 3

Singles
1. #10 Layne Sleeth (OU) def. #8 Carson Branstine (TAMU) 6-2, 6-3
2. #53 Carmen Corley (OU) def. #24 Tatiana Makarova (TAMU) 3-6, 6-2, 6-3
3. #74 Mary Stoiana (TAMU) def. #97 Ivana Corley (OU) 6-2, 6-1
4. Jayci Goldsmith (TAMU) def. Dana Guzman (OU) 6-4, 6-2
5. Gianna Pielet (TAMU) def. Alexandra Pisareva (OU) 6-2, 6-3
6. Emma Staker (OU) def. Jeanette Mireles (TAMU) 3-6, 6-3, 6-4

Doubles
1. #10 Ivana Corley/Carmen Corley (OU) vs. #6 Tatiana Makarova/Jayci Goldsmith (TAMU) 6-3
2. #47 Carson Branstine/Mary Stoiana (TAMU) def. Layne Sleeth/Alexandra Pisareva (OU) 6-3
3. Dana Guzman/Emma Staker (OU) def. Renee McBryde/Gianna Pielet (TAMU) 7-5

Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (3,4,1,5,2,6)

RESULTS

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Carmen Corley

Ivana Corley

Dana Guzman

Alexandra Pisareva

Layne Sleeth

Emma Staker

Sponsors

University of Oklahoma Athletics