University of Albany Tennis Defeats Both Siena & Hartford In Weekend Sweep - UAlbany Sports 2013

ALBANY, N.Y. – The University at women’s tennis team won two matches in 14 hours to raise their record to 5-5 on Saturday, March 9. First they defeated crosstown rival Siena, 4-3, before winning their first America East Conference dual match against Hartford, 6-1. Junior Rocio Lopez and sophomore team co-captain Kirsten Scott went undefeated on the day, teaming up for two doubles victories and winning both of their singles matches. The No. 1 doubles duo has now won three straight.

Siena: The Great Danes quickly dealt fatal blows to the Saints (2-3) No. 1 and No. 2 doubles teams to take the doubles point. Three of the singles matches were tough battles. Graduate student Irene Santos fought off multiple set points and came back to win the first set. The Spaniard, Santos, led 2-1, in the second when Lopez clinched the match and Santos was pulled off for health reasons.

Co-captain and sophomore Fran White nearly got her first win of the spring as she turned in a stellar performance at No. 6. White played a solid first set, narrowly losing.

The Great Danes proceeded to romp Siena in the three singles matches needed to clinch the win. Scott got the win first, followed by freshman standout Cat Crummey and lastly was Lopez winning easily.

Hartford: UAlbany (5-5, 1-0 AE) turned around after match one to battle Hartford (0-5) at Tri-City Fitness. In their first America East dual match of 2013, the Great Danes were victorious. Their only losses were No. 3 doubles and No. 6 singles due to default.

UAlbany went into doubles play with a default loss, therefore needing to win both matches to take the first point of the night. UAlbany took care of business as Lopez and Scott showed veteran leadership at the top spot. They shutout their opponent, 8-0. Crummey returned to the court from injury with freshman teammate Mireille Hermans defeated Jessica Galik and Hannah Goldman, 8-3, to clinch the first point.

In singles play, the Great Danes won their matches in order to cruise to victory. Lopez advanced to 9-1 in singles play on the season with a 6-2,6-2 win over Katina Zampas. Scott and Crummey, both recently off injury, also had strong performances. They won 6-1, 6-0 and 6-0, 6-1 respectively. Crummey clinched the match with the win.

"It was a long day, starting at 7:30 a.m. and ending at 10:30 p.m. It was a bit of a mental gut-check for everyone.” said coach Gordon Graham. “The team responded well with lots of positive energy. We will be fighting hard to keep that rolling.”

The next match for the Great Danes is Wednesday, March 13 as they host the Sacred Heart Pioneers at Tri-City Fitness in Latham. Match time is set for 2 p.m.