Tennis duo loses to UCLA for first season loss

Marshall University women's tennis tandem Michaela Kissell and Dominika Zaprazna suffered their first loss of the season in the quarterfinals of the ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships on Nov. 6.

The tournament was on the campus of Yale University and the duo lost to the fourth ranked doubles team in the country.

The team would drop the match 8-4 with UCLA's Andrea Remynse and Yasmin Schnack showcasing their ability as the higher ranked team.

"It was really good experience overall, especially since my teammate is so young," Kissell said. "We went out there with the right mindset, but I think things just didn't go our way with calls and we got down early."

Coming in to this match, Kissell and Zaprazna posted a very impressive 9-0 record winning crowns at the Hokie Invitational and the ITA Atlantic Regional.

In the opening round, the two battled through adversity and won 9-7 over the ninth ranked doubles team of Karen Nijssen and Kristi Boxx from the University of Mississippi.

"It was a dogfight from the very first point, we were down most of the match," Kissell said. "It was really exciting being that we just started playing together. I was very happy for Dominika for stepping it up as a freshman on such a big stage."

Kissell expects the duo to be ranked when new rankings come out after the holiday season.

Kissell is in fact no stranger on the national stage as she represented the Herd in the Riviera/ITA Women's All-American Championships.

She would lose to the second ranked player in the country, University of Georgia's Chelsey Gullickson, after advancing to the second day of competition.

Kissell, a transfer student from the University of Miami, said she has transitioned well with help from her teammates.

"My teammates were awesome from the first day, helping me get everything I needed to get settled," Kissell said. "The coaches were so welcoming, it wasn't as hard as I expected, and their help made it really easy on me."

Kissell's teammate Dominika Zaprazna of Bratislava, Slovakia is also transitioning from halfway across the world.

"It's amazing, it's a great experience and I am happy to have the opportunity," Zaprazna said.

Now that the season is over, the team prepares to lower their time a week from 20 hours a week to 8 hours a week for practice.

"I will be staying in the gym and hitting all offseason," Zapranza said. "We don't have many practices in the offseason, so it gives me more time to prepare myself."

The Herd will be back in the action Jan. 23 against Morehead State and Kissell feels her team is indeed ready to take the conference.

"Everyone is working hard for the spring," Kissell said. "We have a really tough schedule and we really want to win the conference championship. Everyone is really taking pride in their singles and doubles play, and if we can come out with that mindset, there's not a lot of teams that can beat us."

Will Selbee can be contacted at selbeejr@marshall.edu.