MONROEVILLE, Pa. - The 11th-ranked Trinity University women's tennis team went toe-to-toe with 13th-ranked Carnegie Mellon University on Saturday but came up just short in a 4-3 decision at the Rashid Hassan Tennis Center. In a tightly contested matchup between two nationally ranked programs, the result wasn't decided until the final singles court.

Trinity set the tone early in doubles, claiming the opening point with composed, authoritative play. First off the courts were Eva Kovachev (Arlington, Texas / The Oakridge School) and Allison Vo (Houston, Texas / Memorial) at #3, who controlled the match from start to finish in a 6-2 victory. Not long after, the No. 8 ranked doubles pairing of Rosabella Andrade (Southlake, Texas / Ponderosa) and Trinity Levy (Camarillo, Calif. / Weil Tennis Academy) followed suit at #1, matching that 6-2 scoreline to clinch the doubles point and give the Tigers a 1-0 advantage. The #2 pairing of Katie Schmidt (Prairie Village, Kan. / Shawnee Mission East) and Lauren Tin (Austin, Texas / Vandegrift) battled deep into their match but ultimately fell 7-5 after the point had already been secured.

Singles play saw momentum swing back and forth throughout the lineup. First to finish was the top court, where Kovachev was tested by Kotistha Modak and dropped a 6-1, 6-1 decision, leveling the match at 1-1. Trinity quickly responded at #4, as Levy delivered a dominant performance, cruising to an impressive 6-2, 6-0 victory over the No. 40 ranked Venkatarama, to restore the Tigers' advantage. Moments later, No. 28 ranked Andrade continued her strong day at #2 with a comfortable 6-3, 6-2 victory over the No. 18 ranked Zinchenko, pushing Trinity out to a 3-1 lead.

The middle and lower courts proved decisive. At #3, Tin battled but fell 6-4, 6-2 to the No. 9 ranked Wong, trimming the margin. Carnegie Mellon then evened the match at #5, where Schmidt pushed Victoria Gazda deep into a first-set tiebreak before coming up short 7-6(7-4), 6-2. All eyes turned to #6, the final court still playing, where the freshman Astrid Kerrman (Edina, Minn. / Edina) fought through three sets but ultimately dropped a 6-3, 1-6, 3-6 decision as Carnegie Mellon sealed the 4-3 result.

Despite the narrow loss, Trinity showed depth and grit across the lineup against one of the nation's top teams, with multiple strong individual performances underscoring the Tigers' competitiveness early in the season.

Up Next
The 11th-ranked Tigers are back in action tomorrow, on Sunday, March 1st, as they face off against the 18th-ranked Case Western Reserve University at 11:00 a.m. (ET) in Monroeville, PA.