WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - For the first time since the 2009 season, the William and Mary women's tennis team rallied for a national top-20 upset, downing visiting Southeastern Conference foe and No. 19-ranked Mississippi, 4-3, on Tuesday night at the McCormack-Nagelsen Tennis Center. The Green and Gold dropped the doubles point and trailed 3-0, before winning the final four singles matches, including a trio of the three-set variety, to pull out the top-20 victory. The Green and Gold moved to 3-1 on the year, while the Rebels dropped their season opener.

Senior Anik Cepeda, juniors Hope Johnson and Jeltje Loomans and freshman Leeza Nemchinov each tallied singles wins to lead W&M. Cepeda, Loomans and Nemchinov recorded three-set victories in the Tribe's comeback victory. It marked W&M's first win over a national top-20 foe since Jan. 31, 2009 when the Green and Gold downed No. 16 Texas at the McCormack-Nagelsen Tennis Center.

"I have a ton of respect for Mississippi. They are an incredibly deep and well-coached team," head coach Tyler Thomson said following the Tribe win. "We feel fortunate to be able to pull out a win over such a quality SEC team. I am extremely proud of the heart and fight our team demonstrated. They put it all out there tonight, and I could not be more proud of their commitment. We are excited to continue to compete and get back on the court at Harvard this weekend."

With Ole Miss leading, 3-2, the Tribe faced an uphill climb, needing both matches remaining on the court. After splitting the opening two sets, 6-4, 2-6, Cepeda found herself in a 5-3 hole in the decisive third set against Mississippi's Marija Milutinovic. With her back against the wall, the Tribe senior fought back, reeling off four straight games to even the team match at three apiece. It marked her team-leading 10th win of the season as she won for the third time in his last four matches.

"Our senior Anik showed amazing tenacity," Thomson said. "She plays with a never-say-die attitude. It was such a great overall team effort tonight."

The balance of the match came down to the No. 2 singles post where Loomans and Julia Jones split the opening two sets. The Redel sophomore took the initial set in a tiebreak, 7-6, before the Tribe junior forced a decisive third set with a 6-3 victory in the second. With the third set tied at four, Loomans won the final two games, inciting a celebration as she clinched the Tribe's upset of the No. 19 Rebels. Loomans, who missed the majority of the fall due to injury, improved to 4-3 on the season, including wins in three of her four dual matches this season.

Mississippi opened the match with wins at the No. 2 and No. 3 doubles positions to claim the initial point of the match. The Rebels continued to pick up the points in singles play, taking straight-set wins at the No. 1 and No. 6 posts to increase its lead to 3-0.

Johnson got W&M on the board with her first dual-match win of the season at the No. 4 position. She upedned Ole Miss' Erin Stephens, 6-3, 6-3, for her sixth win of the year.

Nemchinov continued her strong rookie campaign, pulling the Tribe within 3-2 via a three-set victory at the No. 3 slot. Nemchinov won the opening set, 6-2, before Mississippi's Mai El Kamash evened things with a 6-2 win the second. The Tribe rookie remained unfazed and rolled to a 6-1 triumph in the third set for her fourth win in the last five matches. Nemchinov moved to 9-8 overall, including a 3-1 dual-match ledger.

The Green and Gold will face two more nationally ranked opponents during the week as it travels to Cambridge, Mass., to face No. 73-ranked Harvard and No. 64-ranked Kansas State. The Tribe and Crimson square off on Friday, Jan. 25, at 3 p.m., before W&M faces the Wildcats on Saturday, Jan. 26, at noon. Both matches will be played at the Murr Center on Harvard's campus.

William and Mary 4, #19 Mississippi 3
Singles
No. 1 - #30 Caroline Rohde-Moe (Ole Miss) def. Maria Belaya (W&M) - 7-5, 6-2
No. 2 - Jeltje Loomans (W&M) def. Julia Jones (Ole Miss) - 6-7, 6-3, 6-4
No. 3 - Leeza Nemchinov (W&M) def. Mai El Kamash (Ole Miss) - 6-2, 2-6, 6-1
No. 4 - Hope Johnson (W&M) def. Erin Stephens (Ole Miss) - 6-3, 6-3
No. 5 - Anik Cepeda (W&M) def. Marija Milutinovic (Ole Miss) - 6-4, 2-6, 7-5
No. 6 - Santa Shumilina (Ole Miss) def. Sydney Smith (W&M) - 6-3, 6-2
Finishing Order: 6, 1, 4, 3, 5, 2*

Doubles
No. 1 - #3 Belaya/Loomans (W&M) vs. Stephens/Verboven (Ole Miss) - 6-3, abandoned
No. 2 - Rohde-Moe/Milutinovic (Ole Miss) def. Cepeda/Nemchinov (W&M) - 8-0
No. 3 - El Kamash/Jones (Ole Miss) def. Johnson/Smith (W&M) - 8-1
Finishing Order: 3, 2*