Charger women’s tennis beat both the Purdue University Northwest Lions and the University of Illinois-Springfield Prairie Stars on the road Feb. 22 and 23, winning 5-2 and 4-1, respectively.
Sophomore Ané Dannhauser won Great Midwest Athletic Conference women’s Tennis Player of the Week after going undefeated over the weekend.
“I was not expecting to be player of the week, but it was such a nice way to end the weekend,” Dannhauser said.
The Chargers won every doubles match against Purdue Northwest on Saturday.
No. 1 doubles pair Dannhauser and senior Courtney Rittel beat out the Lions 6-4. No. 3 pair juniors Megan Hackman and Bella Spinazze followed suit.
“Megan and I played classic, textbook doubles,” Spinazze said. “We took over the net and dominated the match. I am so proud of her and our whole team.”
In No. 2 doubles, senior Libby McGivern and freshman Briana Rees managed a narrow 7-6 win.
In singles against the Lions, the Chargers won four sets and lost two.
In No. 1 singles, Dannhauser fought for a 6-0, 6-4 victory.
“Singles was also very tough, but I really enjoyed the fight,” Dannhauser said. “I thought I was in trouble in the first set, but then everything just clicked, and it was an amazing match.”
No. 2 McGivern and No. 3 Rees also pulled off close wins, going 6-4, 6-4 and 6-3, 6-4, respectively. In No. 5 singles, freshman Julia Zlateva added to the Chargers’ singles victories with a 6-2, 6-4 finish.
Rittel and Hackman fell short in singles play, with Rittel losing 5-7, 3-6, while Hackman fell in the only singles match of the weekend to go to three sets, losing 2-6, 7-6, 1-10.
The Chargers swept in doubles against the Prairie Stars on Sunday, with No. 2 pair McGivern and Rees taking a 7-5 win and No. 1 doubles team Dannhauser and Rittel winning 6-3, extending their undefeated streak this season.
“Ané and I played probably the best doubles that we have all semester,” Rittel said. “Ané’s incredible shots at the baseline and my ability to pick off volleys let us beat both teams.”
In singles, the Chargers quickly earned the wins needed to seal their victory over the Prairie Stars with Dannhauser cruising to a 7-5, 6-3 victory and Rees taking a 6-3, 6-0 win. McGivern fell 2-6, 3-6 but Hackman’s default win at No. 6 singles earned the win for the Chargers.
“This weekend went better than we ever could have hoped for,” Dannhauser said. “Hopefully we can keep building on this performance.”
The Chargers now sit at 5-3 on the season and will face the No. 14 Wayne State University Warriors at the Margot V. Biermann Athletic Center Feb. 28.
