The Georgetown women’s tennis team failed to capture its first win of the season this weekend on a road trip to Lynchburg, Virginia. The Hoyas faced off against Liberty University on Saturday, Jan. 29 and Campbell University on Sunday, Jan. 30.
Georgetown came up short against Liberty, losing 6-1. Sophomore Avantika Willy was the only Hoya to win her singles match. The Hoyas were also defeated in all three doubles sets, giving Liberty the single doubles point, which is awarded to the team that wins a majority of the three doubles matches.
On Sunday, Georgetown started off the match strong against Campbell. At number two doubles, sophomore Chloe Bendetti and graduate student Nadine Del Carmen decisively rolled past their opponents 6-1. At number three doubles, Willy and junior Agata Mikos edged out their match 6-3. Despite losing first doubles, the Hoyas won the doubles point and started the match up 1-0.
Though there were a couple of tight three-setters the Hoyas had a chance to win, they could not carry the doubles momentum into their singles matches. Willy bounced back after losing the first set and won the second 6-4, but ran out of steam in the third. Sophomore Morgan Coburn also lost a heartbreaker 6-4 in the third set. The Hoyas lost at all six positions and now fall to 0-4 on the season.
Willy and Coburn reflected on their losses in an interview with The Hoya.
“In the first set of the match, I wasn’t converting too well on important deuce points. However, I was able to stay in it and reset for the second set. I started to play smarter which helped me come back and take the second set. Overall it was a fun and challenging match,” Willy said.
Coburn also spoke about the evolution of her play throughout her match.
“That was definitely a tough loss. I was the last one on the court and at that point really wanted to put another point on the board for my team. My opponent served and volleyed and was able to get that to click more for her in the third. I was very proud of the way that I fought and ultimately it ended up being a few deuce points that flipped it in her favor,” Coburn said.
Learning to deal with injury has made players more versatile, according to Head Coach Freddy Mesmer.
“I think our women have learned to be adaptable and understand their role in the team, and that everyone needs to be able to play at any point during the weekend,” Mesmer told The Hoya.
Coach Mesmer also remarked that the Hoyas have a better sense of what they need to work on after this weekend and are looking forward to a productive week of practice.
“Going into this week of training, we will look to continue our momentum on the doubles court and try to build on a few things singles-wise. I think the biggest thing for our team is to keep the match play up, and the experience we have been lacking will come over the course of the season,” Mesmer said.
Georgetown looks to end its four-match losing streak next weekend when it faces off against the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland on Sunday, Feb. 5.
