The UR women’s tennis team did decently on their recent spring trip to Orlando, beating Springfield College 7-2, narrowly losing to Bryn Mawr College 4-5 and falling 0-9 to the University of Puerto Rico.
Against Springfield, junior Alexa Perry won at No. 1 singles with a commanding two-set domination, 6-2, 6-2, sophomore Melinda Beckmann won at the No. 2 singles position, 6-4, 6-4, and sophomore Brittany Bowman completed the singles sweep of the first three positions with a 7-5, 6-4 victory. Two other players won their singles matches.
Sophomore Kristen Shaw won at the fourth singles position, coming back from a first set loss, 3-6, 6-1, 6-1, and sophomore Michelle Desrosiers came through at the No. 5 with a 6-2, 6-0 win.
To go along with these singles victories, the Yellowjackets came through with some tough doubles wins as Perry and Beckmann came through victorious in the No. 1 doubles, 8-5, while Bowman and sophomore Debbie Katz destroyed the opposition with an 8-2 victory at the No. 3 doubles.
Injuries have taken their toll.
“The latest injury came right before the trip when freshman Vicky Wells, who has had a good start to the spring was injured and unable to play in the first two matches of the trip,” head coach Anna Khvalina said. “With Vicky out, everyone has had to step up once again and it was a great team effort in the win against Springfield College.”
After the Springfield triumph the team narrowly fell to Bryn Mawr College with Perry and Beckmann leading the team with wins at the top singles positions. “Both of them have done very well so far stepping into higher spots of the lineup left by our top player, Colleen Cross, studying abroad this semester,” Khvalina said.
The University of Puerto Rico proved to be a match-up nightmare for UR as the Yellowjackets were swept, 0-9.
“University of Puerto Rico proved to be tough, however Alexa and Mel competed well in doubles losing a close match at No. 1,” Khvalina said.
The positive news came from Wells returning back to the line-up against University of Puerto Rico, only to lose at the No. 4 singles in a super tie-breaker.
Overall, Khvalina had some encouraging words for the team.
“We’ve made significant improvements since the start of this semester; I am seeing players new to the lineup becoming more comfortable with their positions and level of competition,” she said.
However, she also mentioned the fact that there is always room for improvement.
“We still have work to do to remain competitive this season, but the experience that the team is gaining is very important as we build for the future,” she said. “It’s critical that we continue to build depth and confidence as everyone’s game improves.”
Perhaps the biggest worry she had is a concern of any coach in every sport: injuries. It has been a very trying season in that regard and Khvalina can only hope that the injury bug goes the way of the snow, “I hope we’ve had our share of injuries and can stay healthy for rest of the year.”
The team looks to get back that winning feeling by playing two league games on March 31 against Brandeis University at 9 a.m. and Case Western at 3 p.m. Both games will be at home.
Maystrovsky is a member of the class of 2009.
