The Hillsdale College women’s tennis team won two crucial road matches this weekend, putting their season record at 5-3 and securing their spot in the fast approaching GLIAC tournament.
“These matches were really important for us to gain confidence for the rest of our season,” head coach Nikki Walbright said.
On Friday afternoon, the team drove five hours north to Lake Superior State University in order to prepare for their match on Saturday.
Sweeping the doubles courts and making a strong showing in singles, the women finished the day with a 7-2 win over the Lakers.
Senior Sydney Delp and freshman Julia Formentin teamed up for a close 9-7 win at No. 1 doubles. Senior Lindsay Peirce and freshman Halle Hyman cruised to an 8-2 victory at No. 2 doubles, and at No. 3 doubles freshman Corinne Prost and junior Dana Grace Buck captured an 8-5 win.
Delp, Hyman, Formentin, and freshman Madeline Bissett each contributed a win in singles.
After driving yet another five hours, the Chargers arrived in Houghton, Michigan to face Michigan Tech on Sunday.
After hard-fought matches, the Chargers rose victorious, sweeping both singles and doubles to rout the Huskies 9-0.
Doubles dominated the courts on Sunday. At No. 1 doubles, Delp and Formentin partnered again to win their second match of the weekend 8-3. At No. 2 doubles, Hyman and Peirce also remained a pair and won again 8-5. The last pair, Buck and junior Corinne Prost, defeated their opponents 8-3, to make a clean doubles sweep.
The success continued on the singles courts. In all six singles matches played, every Charger finished her match in straight sets.
In addition, Hyman was named GLIAC Player of the Week after her 4-0 performance over the weekend.
Sunday marked Hillsdale’s first 9-0 win in conference play since October 12, 2013.
“They were two really competitive matches. We had good results, but all the girls had to work really hard,” Walbright said. “They weren’t just easy wins… but the girls came to play, and I was very proud of them.”
Overall, the team spent nearly 20 hours on the road this past weekend.
“We were travelling so it added another tough element, but the girls stayed really focused,” Walbright said. “It was just a great opportunity for all of them to play their best tennis, and they did.”
While dedicating entire weekends to tennis can be tough academically, physically, and mentally, Hyman said she enjoyed spending time with the team.
“It was a really long trip, but I think it was a really good team bonding,” Hyman said. “We had fun and a really good time.”
With three remaining conference matches, the team now looks to continue winning matches in order to improve their seed heading into the GLIAC tournament.
“We are focusing on doing our best to get the best seed we can in the GLIAC tournament,” Peirce said. “We know we have a great opportunity to beat these teams and we want to take advantage of it.”
The team now looks forward to facing Northwood University and Saginaw Valley this coming weekend on the road.
