Good things came in threes for the women’s tennis team, which earned its third victory in a row with a 6-1 rout of Colgate yesterday at the Reis Tennis Center. Syracuse, Marist, and now the Raiders have fallen as the Red have earned a 3-2 record so far in the spring season.
“I thought we played well,” said head coach Laura Glitz. “Obviously, Colgate is not as strong as Syracuse. But, it is always great to get a win, especially the way we did.”
In the singles draw, Cornell only dropped one match, as No.1 senior Akane Kokobu lost a second set tiebreak to Colgate’s Melissa Alikpala. However, in the remainder of the draw, Cornell players won with ease, highlighted by senior Melissa Tu’s perfect match, in which she did not lose a single game. Sophomores Kasia Preneta and Nisha Suda also cruised to individual victories, while junior Mollie Edinson and senior Erika Takeuchi needed tie-breakers on their way to two-set wins.
In doubles, every Cornell team easily defeated its Colgate opponents, led by Akane Kokobu and Mollie Edinson completing an 8-4 victory at No. 1. The pairings of Tu and Takeuchi, and Preneta and junior Kara Maloy also rolled over opponents to secure a Cornell sweep of the doubles bracket.
“Everyone played well,” said Glitz. “Mollie Edinson played two matches and one of them was really tight. That is good for her confidence.
The team is in the midst of a six-match homestand. After that stretch, the Red will have a nine-day break before it heads to Hawaii for more spring competition.
“In Hawaii we are playing some difficult teams, which will help us prepare for our upcoming matches,” Glitz said.
Those matches are the beginning of the Ivy League season in early April. All of the Red’s competition prior to that point will serve primarily as preparation and a way to gauge how the Red with match up against its conference rivals.
“Syracuse lost to a couple of Ivy League teams, but they beat Brown,” Glitz said. “Boston College beat us and Princeton. But, we haven’t peaked yet as a team. My goal is that we are playing our best once it gets to be April and the Ivy League matches start.”
The Red has tweaked its practice regimen from the fall season to prepare.
“In the fall, I did not do too many individual practices,” Glitz said. “Now, I split them up into groups of three twice a week, so they can work individually. We are also doing some sprinting.”
Archived article by Bryan Pepper
Sun Staff Writer