By Rohan Ahluwalia
Staff Writer
Despite earning a 9-0 victory against Stevens Institute of Technology on Wednesday, April 18, the women’s tennis team lost its first game of the season when they fell to the University of Mary Washington, 7-2, on Saturday, April 21. Meanwhile, the men dropped both of their games.
At the outdoor tennis facilities, sophomore Audrey Chen and freshman Andrea Giacobbo completed a doubles sweep with an 8-3 victory.
Senior Maddy Stoner then took the spotlight as she picked up her 100th career victory for the Lions. She partnered with junior Grace Minassian for an 8-0 win. Meanwhile, junior duo Sneha Rangu and Alyssa Baldi continued their fantastic partnership this season with a commanding 8-0 doubles victory.
In singles competition, the women claimed all six matches in straight sets and clinched a 9-0 victory. Rangu and Minassian both outlasted their opponents, and senior Brittany Reedman won in two 6-0 sets.
Stoner then managed to notch her 101st victory as she defeated Stevens’ freshman Chelsea Braithwaite in 6-2 and 6-0 sets. Baldi and Chen then finished the game for the College, finishing the singles competition with a pair of wins.
Baldi credits the team’s supportive dynamic for its success.
“I think it comes from how close we are as a team,” Baldi said. “Even though there is a certain amount of players from each grade, we are all really close and bring a lot to the table together.”
The team then endured its first loss of the season against the University of Mary Washington on Saturday, April 21.
In doubles competition, the team dropped all three matches. Stoner and Minassian were defeated 8-3 by Mary Washington seniors Ashley Barrow and Kait Brogan. Rangu and Baldi endured their first doubles loss to Mary Washington sophomore Rachel Summers and senior Caroline Mosberg, 8-3. Giacobbo and senior Danna Tsay also suffered an 8-3 loss against Mary Washington senior Brittany McBride and junior Danielle Mirabella.
In singles, only Reedman and Rangu could salvage a win for the Lions. Reedman managed to win in straight sets over Mary Washington senior Hannah Jabusch while Rangu defeated Brogan in straight sets as well.
The men also struggled against Stevens on April 18. The afternoon began brightly for the College as they won two of their three doubles matches. Junior Matt Puig partnered with sophomore Thomas Wright to defeat Stevens senior Danny Polk and freshman Bryan Szayna, 8-6.
Juniors Tim Gavornik and Omar Bokhari then worked together to take an 8-1 doubles victory. In singles competition, the Lions struggled and lost all six matches to ultimately lose, 7-2.
The team’s downturn continued against the University of Mary Washington as it lost, 6-3. Gavornik and Bokhari were the only winners at doubles, with a closely contested 8-7 matchup against Mary Washington freshman Moses Hutchison and junior Matt Miles.
Going into singles competition, only Puig and Gavornik gathered victories for the Lions. Puig won a close match against Mary Washington sophomore Joseph Brown in 7-6 and 7-5 straight sets while Gavornik won in straight sets over Mary Washington sophomore Michael Fleming.
Both the men’s and women’s tennis teams will seek to amend their mistakes and finish their seasons strong when they take on the State University of New York at Oneonta on Saturday, April 28 at the outdoor tennis facilities starting at 10 a.m.
