BENNINGTON, VT— After returning from their Spring Break trip to California, the #24 Ephs (4-5 overall, 1-3 NESCAC) were welcomed home by Williamstown rainy weather as they hosted the out-of-conference #20 NYU Violets (6-3 overall) this Saturday. The Ephs started and ended the day with energy, celebrating head coach
Anik Cepeda and Assistant Coach
Andrew Dorr's birthdays with a strong 4-1 win.
The Ephs opened with a return to a familiar doubles lineup. At #3, the pairing of junior
Mia Thomann and sophomore
Margaux Molyneux put the Ephs on the board first. After some initial dramatics, their baseline power and solid net play kept the Violets on the back foot for a 6-1 win. At #2, first year
Mia Roets and sophomore
Ahn Lin struggled initially with their opponents pace, falling behind 2-0. However, they continued fighting, with a pair of clutch deuce points seeing them quickly draw level. They didn't stop there, using aggressive net play to take a total of six games in a row to clinch the doubles point for the Ephs. At #1, the seasoned team of senior
Yuu Ishikawa and junior
Jane Ladaga were in a tight battle. After drawing level at 4-4, the Ephs took two tight games off excellent net play and precise serves. They took the win 6-4, completing the doubles sweep for the team and extending their win streak to seven.
The Ephs then took to the court for singles, with lines 1, 3, and 5 up first. Lin had an excellent showing at #5, varying power and spin from the back to disrupt her opponent's rhythm and stormed to a 6-1, 6-2 win. At #1, Ishikawa played some excellent tennis to take a 3-2 lead in the first set. However, her opponent kept her focus, winning some key points to take the first set and a 5-2 lead in the second. Ishikawa fought back to break her opponents serve, but ultimately fell 6-3, 6-3. The Ephs now had a 2-1 lead overall.
At #3, Thomann was in a battle. Facing an opponent with powerful shots, she used her consistency and variation in height to take a 5-2 lead in the first set. However, her opponent adjusted, tying the set at five games each. Thomann refocused, switching between defense and offense to throw her opponent off balance and win the set 7-5. The second set was a tense back and forth battle, with neither player able to break the other. Tied at 4-4, NYU held and broke to take the set 6-4.
At the same time, Roets and Molyneux were battling at #4 and #2. Roets combined scrappy defense with precise forehands to take an early lead, closing out the first set 6-2. Molyneux was overpowering her opponent in a battle between players with powerful serves and ground strokes. She took the first set 6-3, but her opponent adjusted well to take the second. As Molyneux entered the third set, Thomann won a key deuce point up 3-2 to take the lead in the deciding set, finding a level her opponent couldn't match. After almost three hours of play, Thomann emerged victorious with a 6-2 win in the third set. The Ephs now needed just one more win to take the dual match overall.
Both Molyneux and Roets were in battles, trading holds and keeping the score close. As Roets drew level at 4-4 in the second, Molyneux had a key break to go up 5-3. On her service game, she fought through nerves and played aggressive to win her set 6-3 and clinch the victory for the Ephs. As this matchup was played only to decision, play was stopped on the other courts and the Ephs emerged with a 4-1 victory.
After the match, coach Cepeda commented "Today was a great team win -- Mia and Margaux stepped up in their third sets and were aggressive and disciplined on the big points. Shoutouts to our #1 doubles team as well. I know Yuu and Jane's teammates take a lot of confidence from seeing them commit to their aggressive game-style. It was an overall solid victory with a lot of positive language. If this team continues to fight for one another like they do today, we'll have opportunities in every match we play. The Ephs will look to carry the momentum from this win into an important NESCAC battle tomorrow against Bowdoin at 10 AM, hoping for a change in weather conditions so the match can be played outdoors.
Results:
Doubles:
Yuu Ishikawa/
Jane Ladaga (WIL) def. Isabella Hartman/Victoria Wang (NYU), 6-4
Ahn Lin/
Mia Roets (WIL) def. Emma Kast/Jimena Menendez (NYU), 6-2
Mia Thomann/
Margaux Molyneux (WIL) def. Hannah Chang/Norah Staunton (NYU), 6-1
Singles:
Jimena Menendez def.
Yuu Ishikawa, 6-3 6-3
Margaux Molyneux def. Isabella Hartman, 6-3 0-6 6-3
Mia Thomann def. Victoria Wang, 7-5 4-6 6-2
Mia Roets vs. Aditi Narayan, 6-2 4-4 (inc.)
Ahn Lin def. Norah Staunton, 6-1 6-2
Jane Ladaga vs. Siona Vallabhaneni, not played
