Miglena Nenova

HANOVER, NH - The University at Buffalo sent four individuals to the fall season-ending Dartmouth Big Green Invitational, posting outstanding results against some of the top competition in the northeast. Thirty-two singles players and 24 doubles teams were in the field.

Buffalo freshman Miglena Nenova (Rousse, Bulgaria/Eurointellect) was the Bulls' top finisher at the three-day meet. Nenova posted a 3-1 record in the B singles bracket, reaching the championship match. Nenova opened the tournament with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Boston University's Aimee Charest, one of the meet's 10 seeded individuals. Nenova then defeated Dartmouth's Janis Hui, 6-2, 6-1, in the second round and rolled past Syracuse's Carolina Huignard, 6-1, 6-1, in the semifinals to reach the championship match against Lauren Leo of St. John's. In the championship match, Nenova dropped the first set, 6-2, then stormed back to win the second set, 6-0, forcing a tiebreaker. In the closely-contested tiebreaker, however, Nenova fell to Leo 10-8.

Kristen Ortman

Sophomore Kristen Ortman (Amherst, NY/Amherst) competed in the A bracket, opening the tournament with a 6-3, 6-1 loss to Kerry Snow of Dartmouth. Ortman then moved in the back draw, defeating Niagara's Aditi Krishan, 6-3, 6-3, and advanced to the back draw's semifinals following a walkover win over seventh-seeded Erin Katims of Boston Univerity. Ortman was then eliminated in the semifinal round by Anne Catherine Valle of Stony Brook, 7-6 (5), 6-1.

Freshman Katrin Fischer (Ternitz, Austria/Borg) and junior Erica Zielinski (North Tonawanda, NY/North Tonawanda) also competed in singles play. Fischer went 1-2 in the B draw, falling to Huignard in the opening round. She defeated Hallie Erickson of New Hampshire, 6-2, 6-2, in the next round and was defeated by Charest, 6-4, 6-3, in the semifinals. Zielinski dropped both of her A singles matches, 6-0, 6-0, to Katie Jaxheimer of Dartmouth and Katie Bramante of Syracuse.

Nenova and Ortman competed in the doubles bracket, falling to Hui and Jaxheimer of Dartmouth in the first round, 8-3. The duo then moved into the back draw, defeating Amber McGarelick of Army and Kendyl Severino of Syracuse and St. John's Kristina Bothova and Jennifer Liantonio by identical 8-3 scores to reach the consolation final. That match, slated against the second-seeded duo of Preethi Mukindan and Ashley Hyotte of Harvard, was not played.

Fischer and Zielinski won their opening doubles match, 8-1, over McGarelick and Severino. The UB twosome was then eliminated in the second round by Charest and Gabbi Hernandez of Boston University, 8-1.

The Bulls return to action for the spring season in 2004, traveling to Duquesne on February 15 for their next match.