UR tennis exemplified the Yellowjacket spirit of winning on Saturday, April 14 against St. Lawrence University with dominating victories on both the men’s (8-1) and women’s (5-4) sides.
The men’s team won all but one of their singles matches. Despite a great effort put
forth during a tiebreaker in the second set, senior Brian Rice was defeated 6-1, 7-6 (7-3) at No. 1. Senior Alex Magill at No. 2 secured the win with the second and third sets of his match, while freshman Julian Danko at No. 3, junior Joel Allen at No. 4, senior Matt Volkov at No. 5 and junior Jonathan Lieb at No. 6 all won their singles matches in straight sets. Magill, Danko, Allen and Volkov were all double winners, bringing home victories in both their singles and doubles match-ups.
The Yellowjackets had a clear advantage over the Saints in doubles competition. Allen and Rice at No. 1, Magill and Danko at No. 2 and sophomore John Lewis Etter and Volkov at No. 3 all easily defeated their opponents, only dropping two or three points.
The women’s victory proved to be a bit more of a challenge. However, the ’Jackets were ready to overcome their opponents, who only had one loss prior to this competition.
The Saints went down with a fight, winning two of the singles and doubles match-ups. However, UR stayed strong during several three-set matches to secure the one-point win over St. Lawrence. Both freshmen Rachel Suresky and Cara Genbauffe endured long matches before finishing victorious. The ladies’ efforts paid off when Suresky won 7-6 (2), 5-7, 6-4 at No. 5, while Genbauffe triumphed 6-7 (3), 6-1, 7-5 at No. 6.
Senior Danielle Shreck was a double winner against the Saints. She defeated her opponent in straight sets 6-2, 6-0 at No. 3 for singles and won 8-2 in doubles at No. 2 with
senior Alexandra Goodman. They were the only pairing to come out victorious. Junior Frances Tseng was the only other UR player to also finish successfully in straight sets at No. 1.
With this team win, the men sprang to a 6-10 record and No. 18 ranking in the Northeast Region. Despite strong efforts, the men lost 3-6 against Rochester Institute of Technology on Wednesday, April 18. Their next competition is away against Vassar College on Sunday, April 22 at 12 p.m., before they head to the University Athletic Association (UAA) Championships in Orlando, Fla. at the end of this month.
The women’s record improved to 8-3 overall, thereby maintaining the team’s No. 14 ranking. They will play Williams College away on Sunday, April 22 at 11 a.m. This is also their last match before heading to UAA Championships.
Holden is a member of the class of 2013.