Bison Women’s Tennis headed up to Erie, Pa. this past weekend to compete in two dual matches against Slippery Rock and Mercyhurst. The team gained momentum toward their winning streak as they took a victory over Slippery Rock on Saturday, Feb. 22 and defeated Mercyhurst the following Sunday, Feb. 23. These two wins added to their victory against Marist put the team at a 3-4 record for the spring season.
The match against Slippery Rock started with doubles play. Power pair Whitney King ʼ25 and Abby Platt ʼ26 took a quick win against their Lion opponents. Despite sophomore Jaycie Mair’s and first year Cameron King’s 2-6 loss, Anna Lajos ʼ25 and Riley Jennings ʼ28 followed with a 6-3 victory, securing the doubles point for the Orange and Blue.
While the Bison were up with one point, the match remained a close fight in singles for both teams. On court one, W. King closed her match with a narrow three-set win, finishing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2. However, her doubles partner Platt lost her own game in two, 4-6, 3-6. Lajos met a similar defeat to her Lion opponent, going 4-6, 3-6. Tori Allen ʼ27 also braced a quick loss, 1-6, 1-6.
But on court five, Mair broke the losing train by winning 6-1, 6-0 in singles. The Bison were now tied 3-3 against Slippery Rock until C. King pulled a final 6-4, 6-2 victory over the Lions to give the Bison a 4-3 match win.
The next day, the Orange and Blue were back in action against Mercyhurst. The team dominated straight from the start, with doubles wins from W. King and Platt (6-2) and Caroline Marcus ʼ25 and Natalie Devraj ʼ28 (6-3) giving the Bison the first point.
The momentum continued into singles as the team won five out of six singles matches, all in two sets. W. King finished her day with a 6-4, 6-2 victory. While Platt lost her match 5-7, 2-6, Lajos came out with a quick 6-4, 7-6 win on court three. Allen defeated her opponent 6-1, 6-0, giving the Bison an assured 4-1 match win. However, Mair and Mirra Manolov ʼ26 nailed the coffin with two more singles victories, going 7-6, 6-4 and 6-3, 6-2, respectively. This led the Bison to their best win yet, a whopping 6-1 finish.
The Orange and Blue will be back in two weeks on Monday, Mar. 10 against Boston University, their first Patriot League matchup of the spring season.
