Heading into the middle of its seven-match road trip, the Miami University women's tennis team showed signs of promise as it defeated Boston University (BU) 5-2. However, there is still room for improvement after sustaining a loss to No. 27 Yale University. The RedHawks (4-7) have four more road tests before the start of the Mid-American Conference season.
"I thought that overall it was a good weekend for us," Head Coach Anca Dumitrescu said. "We were able to pull through in a very close doubles against Boston University and be more consistent than they were in singles. Against Yale, we lost a very close doubles which we should have won and which would have changed the momentum of the match. We came close in singles and we just need to sharpen up our toughness in and out of the corners and continue to play consistent tennis out there in singles and aggressive tennis in doubles."
The 'Hawks started off the match against Boston (3-3) by taking the doubles point. The Red and White are 4-1 this season when they have earned the doubles point.
Miami began singles with sophomore AlixThurman picking up a 6-2, 6-0 victory to put the team up 2-0 in the match. The Terriers kept on challenging the RedHawks with a 6-1, 6-1 triumph over freshman Chole Heerden. The 'Hawks earned the match-clinching point as junior Nimisha Mohan and freshman Ana Rajkovic got 6-2, 6-1 and 7-5, 6-1 wins The Terriers still fought on, with senior Vivien Laszloffy defeating sophomore Christine Guerrazzi 6-1, 6-4. To close out the match, junior Christiana Raymond triumphed with a three set win. The win snapped a two-match road losing streak for Miami, while BU sustained its third consecutive loss overall.
"We played well against Boston," Mohan said. "Getting the doubles point helped us in the match. We played our game and we were consistent on Saturday."
The RedHawks had a considerably tougher road against Yale (6-1) in doubles as they were swept by the Bulldogs on Sunday afternoon, with the and junior Annie Sullivan.
In singles action, Yale sprung out to a 3-0 lead in the match with No. 63 ranked senior Elizabeth Epstein defeating Thurman 6-1, 6-1 and sophomore Hanna Yu getting a 6-0, 6-3 win over Rajkovic. The Bulldogs earned their fourth and fifth point with freshman Madeleine Hamilton and sophomore Amber Li downing Raymond and sophomore Ramona Costea 6-2, 6-1 and 4-6, 6-1, 6-1, respectively. Miami kept on fighting, as Mohan upset the 70th ranked singles player in the nation, junior Blaire Seideman, 7-5, 6-4 for her third straight win in singles. Guerrazzi dropped a hard-fought three-set match against Sullivan 5-7, 6-2, 6-7 to close out the match.
"Playing a team like Yale was a good experience for us," Mohan said. "We have to learn to play our best and be more consistent because every point counts. We've improved over the course of this weekend."
The RedHawks will continue their road stand in Atlanta, Ga. this weekend as they face North Texas University Saturday and Georgia Tech University Sunday.
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