Ephs Play Cardinals For The First Match Of Spring Season

Bennington, VT - The Ephs took on the Cardinals for their first match of the Spring season. Due to a heavy storm, the match was played indoors, but that did not stop the Ephs from bringing the energy. Head Coach Anik Cepeda says, "We're a small team this season, but we didn't feel small today. It was important for the squad to set this precedent early this season and I think they pulled it off against a team that's ranked top four in the country."

Doubles started the afternoon off strong, with number one doubles team Katherine Orgielewicz and Yuu Ishikawa along with number two doubles team Jade Ladaga and Ananya Aggarwal securing two wins for Williams. Orgielewicz and Ishikawa found a decisive win with their lethal serve and volley poach, defeating their opponents 8-2. Ladaga and Aggarwal were neck and neck with their Cardinal opponents, and thanks to their consistent and high energy, when the opportunity arose they pounced, breaking their opponent's serve to win 8-6. 

With the Ephs up 2-1 after doubles, tensions rose in anticipation of the deciding round of singles. Number one seed Orgielewicz played an epic two and a half hour match against her Cardinal opponent. Despite losing the first set due to her opponent's high-spin, consistent balls, Orgielewicz fought back in the second by dictating points and split sets. Unfortunately, the close match slipped away at the end, but her impressive grit and high energy inspired all her teammates. 

Third seed Ishikawa also lost the first set of her singles match, but by mixing up the ball with heavy spin balls and slices, she was able to force her opponent to make errors, winning her the second seat with a neat 6-2. In the third set tiebreak, Ishikawa raised her level even more and found chances to win at the net, and ultimately the match. Second seed Mia Thomann fought a close match, hitting a deep, heavy ball and working the point, but in the end fell to the Cardinal. The fourth and fifth seeds Aggarwal and Ladaga similarly fought close matches, with many games decided on deuce points and several match points fended off. However, it was not enough today and the Cardinals won with an overall score of 6-3.

Cepeda adds, "The match came down to a few points here and there. That's not a bad place to start. We'll get after it in practice this week. We have a lot to work on, but we have a team that wants to work on it."

The Ephs look forward to playing next Saturday against Bates College and to the kicking off of their Spring season.


Complete Results: 
Williams College vs. Wesleyan University

Doubles:
Katherine Orgielewicz / Yuu Ishikawa vs. Nika Vesely / Leila Epstein
    Williams 8-2
Jade Ladaga / Ananya Aggarwal vs. Caitlyn Ferrante / Sasha Gaeth
    Williams 8-5
Mia Thomann / Maya Jamroz vs. Sarah Youngberg / Renna Mohsen-Breen
    Wesleyan 8-1

Singles:
Katherine Orgielewicz vs. Nika Vesely
    Wesleyan 6-2, 2-6, 6-3
Mia Thomann vs. Leila Epstein
    Wesleyan 6-4, 6-4
Yuu Ishikawa vs. Caitlyn Ferrante
    Williams 4-6, 6-2, 10-2
Ananya Aggarwal vs. Kristina Yu
    Wesleyan 6-3, 6-2
Jane Ladaga vs. Sarah Youngberg
    Wesleyan 6-3, 6-3
—————— vs. Renna Mohsen-Breen
    Wesleyan def.