DALLAS - Despite another No. 2 singles win by Polina Konop on Monday, Northwestern State could not overcome the hard-fought loss of the doubles point and was beaten 6-1 at SMU in women's tennis.
 
The Lady Demons fell to 2-2 while SMU improved to 2-3 after three losses to top 60-ranked LSU, Tulane and Alabama.
 
Konop won 7-6 (3), 1-6, 10-5 in the No. 2 singles over Aleksandra Malyarchikova to raise her singles mark to 4-0 this spring.
 
Tight matches at No. 1 and No. 3 doubles fell SMU's way, setting the tone for the afternoon. NSU's No. 1 tandem of Tatiana Larina and Andrea Nedorostova were edged 9-7 by Malyarchikova and Vasziliza Bulgakova. At No. 3, the Lady Demons' Amy Williams and Daniela Simonova fell 8-6 to Hristina Dishkova and Holly Verner.
 
All three NSU doubles pairings suffered their first defeats of the year, including an 8-3 decision in the No. 2 match with Natalya Krutova and Konop losing.
 
"SMU is a very good team. We played good doubles but lost a tough point. We had a poor start at 4-6 singles and could not recover," said Lady Demon head coach Patric DuBois.
 
"Polina had a great win against a player formerly ranked in the top 600 in the world on the WTA Tour," he said. "We're proud of the way she competed."
 
The Lady Demons play on the road this weekend at former Southland Conference rivals Texas State (Saturday) and Texas-San Antonio (Sunday).  They are home again Feb. 22 against Louisiana-Monroe.
 
SMU 6, Northwestern State 1
Women's tennis at Dallas, Texas
 
Doubles
 
1. Vasziliza Bulgakova/Aleksandra Malyarchikova (SMU) d. Tatiana Larina/Andrea Nedorostova 9-7
2. Edyta Cieplucha/Elena Fayner (SMU) d. Polina Konop/Natalya Krutova 8-3
3. Hristina Dishkova/Holly Verner (SMU) d. Daniela Simonova/Amy Williams 8-6
 
Singles
1. Cieplucha (SMU) d. Larina 6-3, 6-1
2. Konop (NSU) d. Malyarchikova 7-6 (3), 1-6, 10-5
3. Bulgakova (SMU) d. Krutova 6-1, 7-6
4. Fayner (SMU) d. Nedorostova 6-2, 6-2
5. Dishkova (SMU) d. Williams 6-0, 6-1
6. Yana Erkeeva (SMU) d. Simonova 6-0, 6-2
 
Records:
NSU 2-2, SMU 2-3