WAYNE, N.J. (October 19, 2018) – The Rutgers University-Newark women's tennis team suffered a very close 5-4 loss this afternoon at New Jersey Athletic Conference foe William Paterson University. The Scarlet Raiders move to 1-10 (0-5 NJAC) while the Pioneers complete their regular season with a record of 1-9 (1-5 NJAC).

R-N jumped out to a 1-0 lead as junior Nell Karpinski and senior Bryanna Thaxton doubled up their opponents at the no. 1 doubles position, 8-4.

Still, the momentum swung back in favor of the hosts as they won the next two doubles contests by identical 8-6 scores in close matches to take a 2-1 advantage into singles play.

Karpinski quickly evened the match back up by taking her contest at no. 1 singles in a dominant straight sets victory 6-0, 6-1. The Raiders then grabbed the lead when rookie Emely Conza cruised to a 6-0, 6-0 win at no. 5.

WPU tied the match at 3-3 with a 6-2, 6-2 decision at the third position before retaking a slim 4-3 edge following a victory at no. 4.

Thaxton saved the contest for Newark at the second singles spot with a big 7-5, 6-1 win that made it 4-4, forcing the decisive point to no. 6 where freshman Natalie Hernandez and Briya Smallwood faced off.

In a marathon, back-and-forth contest, Hernandez dropped the first set 6-0 but rallied immediately. She won a critical 7-5 decision in the second stanza before forcing the third set into a tiebreaker. Unfortunately, Hernandez would fall 7-4 in that tiebreaker as the Pioneers earned the point and 5-4 win.

"I am very proud of how our team fought today. The match came down to Natalie who was fantastic and saved five match points, but it's unfortunate that this competition went the other way." said Head Coach Andres Bustani, "I look forward to building on this tough learning experience as we look to close out this season strong as a unit."

The Scarlet Raiders stay on the road for a non-conference matchup with York at 10 a.m. tomorrow.