WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. – The UVa-Wise women's tennis team played a tough West Liberty team Saturday afternoon on the road and suffered a 8-1 loss.
 
The Cavaliers (3-5, 2-3 MEC) were only able to claim one doubles match in the contest against the Hilltoppers (3-1, 2-0 MEC), who swept all six singles matches.
 
West Liberty finished second in the Mountain East Conference regular season standings last year and earned an NCAA Tournament at-large berth. The Hilltoppers were picked to finish third in the MEC preseason poll by a vote of the league's head coaches.
 
The doubles duo of seniors Haley Thacker and Junetta Nuckels claimed the only point for the Cavs in the match as they took down West Liberty's Andrea Puga and Christina Pauley. The pair jumped out to a 7-2 lead and held on for an 8-6 win at No. 3 doubles. With the win Thacker and Nuckels remain a perfect 3-0 this season at the third doubles position.
 
Junior Bailey Christoforatos and sophomore Daria Tyshchenko fell 8-1 at the top doubles spot to the Hilltoppers' Raquel Cabero and Rhiannon James, while sophomore Marti Gay and freshman Mackenzie Lawson were defeated 8-2 by Emily Dawson Ekaterina Pinchuk of West Liberty at No. 2 doubles.
 
Tyshchenko saw her four-match win streak at No. 1 singles come to an end as the sophomore got down early in both sets against the Hilltoppers' Cabero at the top singles spot, falling in straight sets (6-4, 6-3).
 
Both Thacker and Gay claimed four games in their singles matches with Thacker losing 6-1, 6-3 to West Liberty's James at the third spot, and Gay taking a 6-3, 6-1 loss against the Hilltoppers' Puga at the No. 4 position.
 
Christoforatos and Lawson were defeated by the same scores (6-2, 6-1) at No. 2 and No. 5 singles, respectively.
 
Tomorrow the Cavs will return to the Jim and Betty Humphreys Tennis Complex seeking their third win in a row at home. UVa-Wise will take on NCAA Division III Maryville College at 2 p.m. along with the men's tennis team, who will be seeking their second consecutive win. The match will be Maryville's first contest of the fall season.
 
Following Sunday's match the women's team welcomes Lincoln Memorial to Wise Tuesday.
 
Visit uvawisecavs.com for all Cavalier women's tennis news, statistics, complete schedule and more.
 
Full Match Results
West Liberty 8, UVa-Wise 1
 
Singles
1. Raquel Cabero (WLU) def. Daria Tyshchenko (WISE) 6-4, 6-3
2. Emily Dawson (WLU) def. Bailey Christoforatos (WISE) 6-2, 6-1
3. Rhiannon James (WLU) def. Haley Thacker (WISE) 6-1, 6-3
4. Andrea Puga (WLU) def. Marti Gay (WISE) 6-3, 6-1
5. Ana Berbel (WLU) def. Mackenzie Lawson (WISE) 6-2, 6-1
6. Ekaterina Pinchuk (WLU) def. Junetta Nuckels (WISE) 6-0, 6-1
 
Doubles
1. Raquel Cabero/Rhiannon James (WLU) def. B. Christoforatos/Daria Tyshchenko (WISE) 8-1
2. Emily Dawson/Ekaterina Pinchuk (WLU) def. Marti Gay/Mackenzie Lawson (WISE) 8-2
3. Haley Thacker/Junetta Nuckels (WISE) def. Andrea Puga/Christina Pauley (WLU) 8-6