TCU
NCAA Individual Championships
Parajova Cruises Into Second Round
5/20/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
FORT WORTH, Texas - TCU women's tennis senior Simona Parajova made quick work in the Round of 64 at the 2015 NCAA Women's Singles Championship on Wednesday by defeating No. 55 Lauren Marker of Arizona, 6-2, 6-3 at the Hurd Tennis Center in Waco Texas.
No. 46 Parajova, who is participating in her first singles bracket of her career, will face No. 7 Jamie Loeb of North Carolina on Thursday in the Round of 32 after the convincing opening round victory.
"Simona calmed down after the first two games and was her typical self," head coach Lee Taylor Walker said. "She's one of the best movers and ball strikers in the tournament and that makes her very dangerous. A lot of people don't realize that the only match Simona has lost this year is against Danielle Collins who was last year's NCAA Champion. Her other loss to Kyle McPhilips this spring was a retire due to sickness. So in my mind, Simona can do as well as anyone this week.
"I'm just so happy to see her start the tournament off well. She's had a great attitude all year and her fitness is second to none. It will be a challenge tomorrow against (Jamie) Loeb, but not a level of play that Simona hasn't seen before. At this point, everybody is good and it's anyone's match. I'm proud of her and thankful to be a part of this tournament with her."
Parajova had to make a comeback to start her match as Marker broke the Slovakia native and then held serve for a 2-0 lead. Parajova did not back down from the challenge and won the next six straight games to win the first set 6-2.
The second set was all in Parajova's control, as she ran out to a 4-1 lead. Despite being broken, Parajova regained her composure and finished out the set by breaking Marker one final time and then holding serve for a 6-3 victory.
With the win on Wednesday, Parajova now has a 25-4 record on the season and has won her last 12 straight matches. The victory also marked her sixth of the season win of the season over a ranked foe.
Players Mentioned
