Oct. 1, 2006

DALLAS (SMU) - Natalia Bubien was unable to over come Alex Haney of Auburn in the pre-qualifying rounds of the Riviera/ITA Women's All-American Championships as she fell, 6-1, 7-5.

"This was a great opportunity for Natalia to be able to compete against some of the best players in the nation," said Lauren Longbotham. "She has worked hard to raise her game and being able to compete in this tournament is the first step for her to really make a name for herself."

"(Alex) Haney is a good player who set up her points well and was able to start out the match really aggressive. Once Natalia was able to start being aggressive, she was able to control points more and get herself back into the match."

Haney came out strong in the first set but Bubien stepped up in the second set to come back from a, 4-1, deficit. Bubien put together a solid set to challenge Haney but could not overcome her.

Bubien was the first Mustang to get accepted into the bracket since 2000 when two SMU players participated in the pre-qualifying rounds.

Next up for the Mustangs is the Rice Invitational, Oct.6-8 in Houston, Texas.