IOWA CITY, Iowa – Sandra Honigova fell just shy of advancing to the ITA Central Regional semifinal, dropping a three-set thriller to Sofia Blanco of Oklahoma State in Monday's quarterfinal at the Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Center.
 
It was an intense match from the start, as both players showed resiliency until the end. Honigova fell behind in the first, dropping the opening set 6-2. It was all Honigova in the second, rolling to a 6-1 win to force a decisive third.
 
Both players traded breaks early and often, before becoming tied at four all. Honigova, who ranks No. 94 in fall rankings, rallied in the last two games to deuce, before Blanco prevailed – winning 6-4.
 
Honigova became just the fifth Shocker since 1984 to reach the quarterfinal of the ITA Central Regional, and the second under 10^th year head coach Colin Foster. (Julia Schiller, 2015)
 
WSU will return to action Oct. 26-28 at the Missouri State Invitational in Springfield, Mo.
 
FROM HEAD COACH COLIN FOSTER
 
….on Sandra's quarterfinal match
"Today's match was a hard fought one. Both players left it all on the court and I was proud of Sandra's fight."
 
….on the ITA Central Regional
"These fall tournaments are all about growing as players and as a team. We learned a lot about things we are doing well and things we need to get better at. This tournament is always strong and a good measuring stick at the midpoint of our fall semester to give us things to prioritize in the coming weeks and tournaments."
 
 
Results
Quarterfinals
Blanco (OkST) def. No. 94 Honigova (WSU), 6-2, 1-6, 6-4