IOWA CITY, Iowa – The University of Denver women's tennis team (3-1) captured a 4-2 win over Kansas State (1-4) in a neutral-site match in Iowa City, Iowa, on Saturday.
 
The win came less than 20 hours since Denver's previous match, a 5-2 loss against host Iowa on Friday.
 
Doubles:
Denver opened by claiming the doubles point on Courts 1 and 3. DU's No. 3 doubles team of freshmen Caroline Driscoll and Louise Wikander took the day's first win, breaking three times total on their way to a 6-2 win.
 
In No. 1 doubles, sophomore Andrea Burguete Beltran and senior Britt Pursell broke at love to take a 4-3 lead and nearly broke again in their next return game. The DU pair ultimately held in the match's final game to win, 6-4.
 
On Court 2, fifth-year student Taylor Melville and freshman Claudia Martinez de Velasco were on serve 5-5 when DU clinched the doubles point, leaving their match unfinished.
 
Singles:
Only one of the six singles matches finished in two sets: Driscoll's No. 5 singles match against KSU's Maria Santos. The first set stayed on serve until the Denver freshman broke in the final game to take it 7-5. She carried momentum into the second set, capturing two breaks early for a 3-0. After being broken on her first attempt to serve for the set, she broke back in the very next game to win 6-3.
 
The next two matches to finish went Kansas State's way, evening up the team scoreboard at 2-2. Melville rallied back from a first-set loss to take a 4-1 lead in the second set and served for it at 5-2. KSU's Rozalia Gruszczynska broke in that seventh game to extend the set, but Melville answered immediately with a third break to force a decisive set. The players traded breaks again midway through the set, though Melville yet again won the set – and the match – with a break in the final game.
 
Pursell clinched the win for Denver in No. 3 singles, taking the first set 7-5 after earning the first break of the match late. She traded breaks multiple times in the second set with KSU's Maria Santos, ultimately losing the set 7-5. The DU senior held an early break and served for the match when Santos broke back for 5-3. Pursell got to 15-40 on Santos' serve and ended the match on a wild 30-stroke rally off a lob winner.
 
Up Next:
DU continues on the road next weekend when the team travels to Utah on Friday, February 10, at 1 p.m. MT. The Pioneers return to Denver for five straight home matches beginning February 19 against Brown.
 
Visit DenverPioneers.com for complete coverage of all 18 of DU's NCAA Division I sports
Like Denver Pioneers and Denver Women's Tennis on Facebook
Follow @DU_Pioneers and @DU_WTennis on Twitter
Follow @DenverPioneers and @DU_WTennis on Instagram