Women’s tennis: Tribe downs JMU, Towson to remain undefeated in conference play

Lauren Goodman. COURTESY IMAGE / TRIBE ATHLETICS

Saturday, William and Mary hosted James Madison and Towson in a Colonial Athletic Association double-header.

The Tribe (12-8, 2-0 CAA) forced the Dukes (17-2, 3-1 CAA) to concede their second loss of the season as it reigned victorious, 5-2.

The College claimed the doubles point to start off its day. Junior Clara Tanielian and freshman Vitoria Okuyama dropped their doubles match at the No. 1 spot. However, sophomore Natalia Perry and junior Lauren Goodman outplayed Anna Makarova and Emma Petersen from James Madison at the No. 2 spot. Meanwhile, sophomore Rosie Cheng and senior Olivia Thaler reigned victorious at the No. 3 spot.

The Tribe’s success continued in singles as senior Ekaterina Stepanova won both sets at the No. 5 spot, 6-4, 6-2.

The Dukes fought valiantly at the No. 2 and No. 3 spots in singles play. Makarova claimed a victory over Tanielian, 7-6, 6-1 in the No. 2 position, while Jona Roka outplayed Perry at the No. 3 spot as she scraped by, 7-6, 7-5.

Goodman and Thaler each found success after their doubles match at the No. 4 position and No. 6 spots, respectively. Both matches went to three sets. Goodman lost the first set 6-3 but then, digging deep, won the last two 6-3, 6-4. Thaler narrowly lost her first set 7-6 but then decisively won the following two sets 6-4, 6-2.

Cheng fought strongly at the No. 1 spot to finish out the match with the fifth and final Tribe victory against the Dukes. The game was tight, with Cheng winning in three sets, 7-6, 6-3, 7-5.

The College continued to dominate on the court as it made short work of Towson in the second match of the day with a 6-1 victory.

The Tribe won the doubles point for the second time Saturday against the Tigers (10-8). Okuyama and Tanielian claimed a victory at the No. 1 spot while senior Cecily Wuenscher and sophomore Charlotte Madson came out on top at the No. 2 spot. However, senior Maria Groener and junior Deepa Dhore dropped their contest at the bottom spot in a 6-0 washout.

The Tribe secured wins in nearly all its singles matches, with only Madson dropping her match at the No. 6 spot in the third set.

Perry came out on top at the No. 2 spot, winning 6-2, 6-4. Goodman, at the No. 3 spot, defeated her opponent 6-3 both sets. Continuing the trend, Stepanova won in two sets 6-1, 6-4. Thaler blew her opponent out of the water with a 6-0, 6-2 victory.

Looking ahead, the Tribe will hit the road and travel to Norfolk to face Old Dominion next Friday. The match is set to begin at 4 p.m.

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