The Miami University RedHawks tennis team upset the top-seeded University of Massachusetts Minutemen in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) tournament semifinals on April 25. In the next round, the team fell 4-2 to Toledo in the championship on April 26.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Miami was picked sixth overall by the MAC coaches at the beginning of the season, which motivated the players heading into the weekend tournament.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI took a little bit of that anger out like I wanted to show them, and I think it really helped,\u201d said sophomore Malu Oliveira, who won a three-set match to send Miami to the final.<\/p>\n
During the final championship match, Miami quickly lost the doubles point 6-0, but spirits were still high going into singles.<\/p>\n
In the first round of singles, Oliveira won the first team point. Teammate Allie Faulkner lost her match (6-4, 6-4), but freshman Nina Chavez won her match (6-2, 7-6), contributing another team point. Sophomore Avery Voss lost in straight sets tipping the score\u00a0 3-2 in Toledo\u2019s favor.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tensions rose in the stands, forcing Miami\u2019s head coach Ricardo Rosas to ask Toledo fans to stop cheering when his players made unforced errors.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI am 100% for cheering, but tennis is about you cheering for your team,\u201d Rosas said. \u201cThe MAC is clear about fair play, and that\u2019s what I\u2019m fighting for.\u201d<\/p>\n
Freshman Maria Komar fought for the win in the third set against Toledo\u2019s Annika Munson, while freshman Evelyn Risner was in a third set against Anastasia Akuginova. The players from both teams lined up cheering for their teammates as the spectators grew louder.\u00a0<\/p>\n
At 3-4 in the third set, Risner took a medical timeout and a trainer examined her legs. She resumed play down 0-15 after a point penalty for the timeout, and Akuginova went on to win her match (6-3, 6-7, 6-3).\u00a0<\/p>\n
The crowd erupted as Toledo\u2019s team celebrated with hugs and poured Gatorade on head coach Tracy Mauntler. Rosas called the RedHawks for a team huddle on an adjacent court.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously no one likes losing, but it is producing something inside of them,\u201d Rosas said. \u201cI have no doubt that before they leave this program, we will be MAC champions.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Miami ended its season with a 9-14 overall record. Nina Chavez and Malu Oliveira were both named to the All-Tournament team.<\/p>\n
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