Schwarz Pushes Catamounts to 4-3 Victory – Western Carolina University

BOWLING GREEN, KY. – The Western Carolina women’s tennis sophomore Chloe Schwarz helped the Catamounts outlast WKU for a 4-3 victory on Sunday afternoon at the WKU Tennis Complex. 

In last year’s win over WKU, Madison Schwarz battled back from a set down to help WCU claim the tight 4-3 decision as her sister matched it on Sunday.

Schwarz controlled the deciding set by the score of 6-1 to help propel the Catamounts past the Lady Toppers for back-to-back wins for WCU to begin the 2024 spring season.

Madison Schwarz and her sister Chloe opened Sunday’s match fast with a 6-4 win at No. 2 doubles. WKU’s No. 1 pair outlasted Angela Perez and Isabella Sambola, forcing the No. 3 match to decide the opening point.

Andrea Redondo and Jade Groen picked up a 7-5 victory in the No. 3 spot that allowed the Catamounts to gain the match’s opening point.

The Lady Toppers quickly answered with straight-set wins at the No. 4 and No. 6 singles spot to take a 2-1 lead in the non-conference matchup. 

Madison Schwarz needed a second set tiebreaker but could even match at two apiece with her win at the No. 5 spot in the singles lineup for WCU.

Groen picked up her second straight singles win of the young season that allowed the Catamounts to take the 3-2 lead, which was short-lived as WKU evened the match at three.

After Chloe Schwarz traded sets in the first two with WKU, which included a second-set tiebreak, Schwarz controlled the third set by the score of 6-1 to lead WCU to victory.  

The Catamounts return home for a 2 p.m. start on Tuesday, Jan. 30, against Tusculum from the Catamount Athletic Complex. The previous two scheduled matches with the Pioneers have been postponed due to weather.

For the latest information on Catamount women’s tennis, follow @catamounts or @catamountTennis on Twitter or go to www.catamountsports.com. In-match updates are on the Catamount women’s tennis official tennis Twitter page. 

Doubles
No. 1 – Paolo Cortez/Anna-Marie Kopecka (WKU) def. Angela Perez/Isabella Sambola (WCU), 7-5
No. 2 – Madison Schwarz/Chloe Schwarz (WCU) def. Sofia Blanco/Samantha Martinez (WKU), 6-4
No. 3 – Andrea Redondo/Jade Groen (WCU) def. Sayda Hernandez/Mariana Zegada (WKU), 7-5

Singles

No. 1 – Paola Cortez (WKU) def. Isabella Sambola (WCU) – 4-6, 6-2, 6-2
No. 2  – Jade Groen (WCU) def. Rachel Hermanova (WKU) – 6-3, 0-6, 6-3
No. 3 – Chloe Schwarz (WCU) def. Sayda Hernandez (WKU) – 7-5, 6-7 (4-7), 6-1
No. 4 – Sofia Blanco (WKU) def. Angela Perez (WCU) – 6-0, 7-5
No. 5 – Madison Schwarz (WCU) def. Anna-Marie Kopecka (WKU) – 6-4, 7-6 (7-5)
No. 6 – Mariana Zegada (WKU) def. Dasha Osadova (WCU) – 6-1, 6-3

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