HAMPTON, Va. – The Norfolk State women's tennis team lost to a promising Hampton squad on Thursday morning, falling 4-1 at Nielson-Screen Stadium.
 
Hampton (2-2) took a 1-0 lead by winning two of the three doubles matches for the opening point. Sofiya Tsitavets and Yuliya Yurkova earned a dominant 6-1, victory for Norfolk State (4-5) at the No. 2 position, but Hampton won 6-3 at the No. 1 slot and 6-4 on No. 3 to clinch the point.
 
Caroline Nicholls tallied Norfolk State's lone point of the day, winning by opponent retirement at No. 3 singles. Yurkova took her first singles loss of the season in a 6-3, 6-1 result against Diana Starodubtseva at the top spot in the lineup, bringing her record to 5-1 for the season.
 
Meiri Okuwaki took down Tsitavets 6-4, 6-2 at the No. 2 position, before Serena Bryan bested Irina Iurea 6-3, 6-1 on Court 4 to close the match for Hampton.
 
Norfolk State will have nearly a week to regroup, returning to action against North Carolina A&T on Wednesday, Mar. 12 at 12 p.m.
 
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