The Bison women’s tennis team proved to be too much for their upstate New York opponents, posting 4-3 and 5-2 victories over Bryant (2021 NEC runner up) and Siena (2021 MAAC champions). The weekend sweep moves the Bison to 6-1 overall as they continue to build momentum for upcoming Patriot League action. 

Whitney King ’25 and Anna Lajos ’25 exhibited the steady presence of seasoned veterans in their debut NCAA season. Both King and Lajos went 4-0 on the weekend, improving their overall records to 14-2 and 11-1, respectively. The mark is very impressive for Lajos, who comes to the University from Saint Petersburg, Russia, having spent most of her life competing in the United Arab Emirates.

“My experience so far has been amazing,” Lajos said. “Being so far away from home and all of my friends and family is not easy, but having such a supportive coach and knowing that I have seven incredible teammates there for me has been the biggest motivation for me to do my best and work hard every day.”

The team possesses a unique blend of young talent and veteran presence, led by senior captain Daniela Bellini ’22 at first singles and a strong group headlined by Tyne Miller ’24 at third singles and Laurel Utterback ’24 at fourth singles. Kate Novak ’24 and Madi Sebulsky ’24 have combined to round out a deep lineup for the Bison.

With six out of their seven matches played on the road, nothing seems to slow down this group. 

“I think I speak for all of us when I say that spending so much time on the bus, keeping up with school, and giving it our all on the court is exhausting,” Lajos said. “But what keeps us going is playing for each other.”

“Our biggest goal for the team is to give every match our all, be present on court, support one another, and believe in the strength of our team.”

Unfortunately, the Bison men’s tennis squad dropped a tight 4-3 match against Saint Joseph’s on Saturday. While the Orange and Blue won their share of singles matches, they were unable to take enough doubles points to win the day.

Tim Zelikovsky ’24, Nick Mueller ’23 and Michael Owen ’23 all continued their strong spring seasons, each winning singles matches on the day. Zelikovsky also added a No. 1 doubles win, marking his third straight win in both singles and doubles. 

The road to a Patriot League title continues next weekend at the Central PA Tennis Center in South Williamsport, where the Bison will host Saint Francis at 2 p.m.