WILLIAMSTOWN, MA - In their first home match of the
season, the Williams women handily defeated Vassar. After sweeping
doubles, the Ephs only lost one singles point to end with an 8-1
victory.
After Cary Gibson and Grace Baljon blanked their Vassar
opponents on doubles court one, duos Nikki Reich and Lucy Marchese
and Ashley Parsons and Jane Kelley, on courts two and three
respectively, struggled. Both Eph pairs fought through to earn
victories, however, pushing Williams into singles play with
momentum.
Sophomore Baljon, playing on court two, handled Vassar's Romita
easily, earning a fourth point for Williams after taking her match
in straight sets. Earning the fifth point and sealing the win for
Williams was fellow sophomore Parsons, with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over
Kliman.
First-year Reich finished next, also in straight sets. Reich
topped Vassar's Steele 6-2, 6-0. Playing on court one for
Williams was ITA singles champ Gibson, who earned a 6-1, 6-4
victory for the Ephs. Moments after Gibson's win, Marchese stole
another point for Williams, ending with a 6-1, 6-1 win
over Vassar's Barrett.
Vassar's lone point came from senior Courtney Burks, who topped
Eph Kathryn Friedman on court six.
With just one senior in the lineup, the Eph lineup was shuffled.
Head coach Alison Swain commented, "We are lucky to have such
a deep and talented pool of players this year. It gives
us a lot of options and the line up will continue to be a work
in progress all the way through this fall."
With the shake-up, first-years Riech, Marchese, and Friedman
have been given a chance to contribute in the Ephs' first few
matches. "I am very impressed with the first years this fall and
feel like they are making improvements every match to compete
better and better at the college level," said Swain. "They
have shown how well they play the big points because each of
them have such strong competitive drive. This kind of drive
is exactly what we will need against Amherst this Saturday and in
our bigger competitions this spring."
Next weekend the Ephs face a familiar
Little Three foe, hosting Amherst on Saturday. The Ephs
will also be home on Sunday, facing Wellesley.
"We will primarily focus on mentally preparing for the
match, getting psyched, and being ready for what I anticipate being
a fantastic battle on Saturday," said Swain. "Amherst always has a
very strong team, but I think the girls have gained a lot of
confidence since last spring and their finish at NCAAs.
While I know tennis doesn't always draw the big crowds, I
can assure everyone that this is going to be a thrilling match
to watch."
DOUBLES
1. Gibson/Baljon (W) d. Romita/Kliman 8-0
2. Reich/Marchese (W) d. Pontee/Steele 8-6
3. Parsons/Kelley (W) d. Barnett/Burks 8-6
4. Loomis/Friedman (W) d. Anderson/Dunn-Rankin 8-4
SINGLES
1. Gibson (W) d. Pontee 6-1, 6-4
2. Baljon (W) d. Romita 6-1, 6-2
3. Marchese (W) d. Barrett 6-1, 6-1
4. Parsons (W) d. Kliman 6-1, 6-2
5. Reich (W) d. Steele 6-2, 6-0
6. Burks (V) d. Friedman 6-4, 6-7 (7-5), 10-5
7. Loomis (W) d. Anderson 6-1, 6-0
8. Kelley (W) d. Dunn-Rankin 6-2, 6-2
