(Sept. 21, 2000) — The University of Kentucky women’s tennis team came up short after facing tough competition on Thursday. Junior Carolina Mayorga, senior Brooke Skeen and sophomores Leigh Bradwell and Sarah Witten all fell to nationally ranked opponents in the first round of the Main Draw of the T. Rowe Price National Clay Court Championships in Baltimore, the first leg of the ITA Grand Slam.

Carolina Mayorga, the only Cat to make the round of 32 in singles competition, fell to the No. 2 seed, Jahnavi Parekh of Baylor, 6-3, 6-3. Mayorga took an early 3-2 lead in both sets on the highly-ranked Parekh, but was unable to hold on for the victory.

Mayorga will now move on to play in the consolation bracket against 33rd-ranked Krisi Dascoli of Ohio State. The match is scheduled to begin on Friday, Sept. 22, at 8:30 a.m.

UK was the only university to feature two teams in the doubles competition, however, a tough draw would again lead to the downfall of the Wildcats. The nation’s 45th-ranked team of Skeen and Bradwell were defeated by the top-ranked Paolo Palencia and Epek Senoglu of Pepperdine, 6-2, 6-2. Eleventh-ranked Mayorga and Witten also fell in the first round of the Main Draw to Ashleigh Dolman and Maria Galoustova of Oklahoma State, 4-6, 6-2, 6-3.

Both duos will be back in action tomorrow when they play in the consolation bracket. Skeen and Bradwell will take on familiar Southeastern Conference foes Julie DeRoo and Mira Radu of Ole Miss while Mayorga and Witten will match-up against April Gabler and Linde Mues of Wisconsin.