Women's Tennis 4/26/2025 4:00:00 PM Chris Brannick

Bronchos Fall To UNK, Turn To Postseason

Central Oklahoma Loses 5-2 In Season Finale, Heads To MIAA Championship Next Week

EDMOND – Central Oklahoma dropped the regular season finale Saturday at Edmond Racquet Club, falling 5-2 to No. 23 Nebraska Kearney.

UCO finishes the season 10-6 overall and 6-3 in the MIAA. The Bronchos will play in the MIAA Women's Tennis Championship as the No. 4 seed next weekend in Springfield, Missouri.

Anika Ouwejan and Nefeli Zafeiri won 6-3 at No. 1 doubles, but the Bronchos dropped the other two matches to give Kearney a 1-0 lead on Saturday. Ayaka Koga and Pete Komada lost 6-2 at No. 2 doubles and Hui Soo and Karyna Yurchenko lost 6-4 at No. 3 doubles.

In singles play, Central Oklahoma fell behind 3-0 and put itself into a position of needing to win each of the remaining four matches.

Komada got one point, winning 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 at No. 1 singles. And Yurchenko got another, winning 6-3, 6-3 at No. 5 singles, but the Bronchos couldn't overcome UNK.

Zafeiri, who was honored on Senior Day, dropped a 6-3, 6-2 decision at No. 2 singles, and Koga retired at No. 3 singles after dropping the first set, 7-6.

Ouwejan lost 6-1, 7-6 (7-4) at No. 4 singles and Soo lost in three sets, 7-5, 3-6, 10-7, at No. 6 singles.

Central Oklahoma heads to Springfield for the MIAA Championship next week. The six-team postseason tournament gives the top two seeds a bye. Kearney, Washburn, and Northwest Missouri all tied for first at 8-1. UCO is fourth at 6-3. Emporia State (5-4) and Northeastern State (4-5) are also heading to the single elimination playoff.

UCO will play Emporia State Friday. The semifinals are scheduled for Saturday and the championship is scheduled for Sunday. The winner gets the league's automatic qualification into the national tournament.

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Players Mentioned

Ayaka Koga: 5' 3"; Sophomore

Pete Komada: 5' 5"; Junior

Anika Ouwejan: 5' 7"; Sophomore

Karyna Yurchenko: 5' 6"; Junior

Nefeli Zafeiri: 5' 7"; Senior

Hui Soo: 5' 6"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

Ayaka Koga
: 5' 3"; Sophomore

Pete Komada
: 5' 5"; Junior

Anika Ouwejan
: 5' 7"; Sophomore

Karyna Yurchenko
: 5' 6"; Junior

Nefeli Zafeiri
: 5' 7"; Senior

Hui Soo
: 5' 6"; Freshman