NEWARK, N.J. (September 29, 2018) – The Rutgers University-Newark women's team battled non-conference opponent Lehman College this afternoon on The Golden Dome Courts and had a lead after doubles action but eventually fell 7-2. The Scarlet Raiders move to 0-7 while the Lightning improve to 2-4.

Rookies Emily Conza and Sophia Raza got Newark off to a fast start, cruising to an 8-0 victory at the third doubles position. While junior Nell Karpinski and senior Bryanna Thaxton dropped a tough 8-6 decision at no. 1, seniors Kallah Masudi and Melissa Carina Saenz fought to an 8-5 win at no. 2 to put the home side in front 2-1 for the match.

"Taking the lead after doubles play was a big boost to the team and something we can build on going forward." said Head Coach Andres Bustani.

In singles play, Thaxton nearly completed a strong comeback at no. 2 after losing the first set 6-4. The senior battled to even the competition with a 6-2 win in the second set that forced an epic super tiebreaker to decide who would take the team point. Unfortunately, Thaxton eventually fell 15-13 in that super tiebreaker.

Karpinski had a tight match at the top singles position. In a close contest, she eventually fell 7-5 in the first set before forcing a tiebreaker in the second set that went in Lehman's favor, 10-8.

The Lightning defeated Rutgers-Newark in straight sets in the remaining four matches to take the 7-2 decision.

"We had some really close singles matches and while we need to continue improving our depth, today was a better match for everyone and got us back into that competitive spirit." added Bustani.

The Raiders return to action on Thursday as they continue their homestand when New Jersey Athletic Conference foe Kean University comes to the Brick City for a 6 p.m. matchup.