The 50th-ranked Mississippi State women's tennis team dropped a hard-fought

7-0 match to 74th-ranked Middle Tennessee Saturday afternoon on the MSU campus.

The Lady Raiders (6-7) took the early edge over State (4-5) and then claimed

the first four singles matches to clinch the match.

Verena Preiss set the tempo for MTSU, as she knocked off Yumi Ueda 6-3, 6-2.

Stacy Varnell quickly followed her teammate with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Justyna

Switala.

Carole Soubis dropped the opening set of her match with 29th-ranked Manon

Kruse, but she fought back to take a lead in the second set only to see Kruse

prevail and clinch the match with a 6-3, 6-4 win. Carien Venter posted the only

other straight-set victory for the Lady Raiers, knocking off Elaine Fagan 6-4,

6-4.

MTSU closed out the win with a pair of three-set victories. Sophomore Camila

Sagae dropped the first set of her match with Jennifer Klaschka, but she rallied

to take the second set before Klaschka took the third and held on for a 6-2,

4-6, 6-3 win.

Freshman Magdolna Rekasi cruised

through the first set of her contest with Michaela Gridling, but the MTSU netter

took the final two sets for a 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 win.

State's tandem of Rekasi and Sagae captured an 8-3 win over Preiss and

Klaschka at the No. 2 doubles spot. The Lady Dogs couldn't avoid dropping the

opening point for the second straight match, as the Lady Raiders took wins at

No. 1 and No. 3 to claim the early 1-0 advantage.

Soubis and Fagan dropped an 8-2 decision to the 14th-ranked tandem of Kruse

and Varnell. MTSU claimed the opening point when Gridling and Venter notched an

8-4 win over Switala and Ueda.

"We didn't lose this match because we were out-played. We lost because

we lacked intensity, heart and desire," head coach Tracy Lane said.

"We have to find a way as a team to get those things. We have to get more

intensity. Middle Tennessee came to our place and rolled over us. They showed

that they wanted it more."

The Lady Bulldogs' next action comes Mar. 1 as they host South Carolina in

the 2002 conference opener. Match time at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre is

scheduled for 2:30 p.m.

#14 Manon Kruse/Stacy Varnell (MTSU) d. Elaine

Fagan/Carole Soubis (MSU) 8-2

Magdolna Rekasi/Camila Sagae (MSU) d.

Jennifer Klaschka/Verena Preiss (MTSU) 8-3

Michaela Gridling/Carien Venter (MTSU) d. Justyna

Switala/Yumi Ueda (MSU) 8-4

Kruse (MTSU) d. Soubis (MSU) 6-3, 6-4

Klaschka (MTSU) d. Sagae (MSU) 6-2, 4-6, 6-3

Preiss (MTSU) d. Ueda (MSU) 6-3, 6-2

Gridling (MTSU) d. Rekasi (MSU) 6-2, 2-6,

6-4

Venter (MTSU) d. Fagan (MSU) 6-4, 6-4

Varnell (MTSU) d. Switala (MSU) 6-3, 6-3