On Saturday, both the men’s and women’s tennis teams continued their strong seasons with a pair of crushing 8–1 victories over the Denison Big Red.
The men’s team found success across the board, though their victory was anchored by an undefeated record in singles. Third-year Erik Kerrigan routed his opponent in two sets, winning them 6–0 and 6–3, respectively. Second-year Jeremy Yuan took victory in three sets, starting off 6–4 before losing 4–6 and rebounding with a 10–8 performance. Fourth-year Charlie Pei continued the streak, winning 7–6 (7–3) and 6–1 in a row. Alejandro Rodriguez, a second-year, came out the better after four sets: 6–2, 6–7 (5–7), and 10–7. Finally, first-years Alex Guzvha (6–2, 6–3) and Joshua Xu (6–3, 6–1) rounded out a fantastic day, each defeating their opponents without dropping a single set.
The Maroon men also performed favorably in doubles. The duo of third-year Tyler Raclin and Yuan crushed Denison in an 8–4 victory, as did Pei and Xu, who joined forces for an 8–3 victory. The men’s team’s sole defeat came as third-years Kerrigan and third-year Ninan Kumar failed to best the Big Red in a nail-biting 8–7 (8–6) defeat.
The women’s team was similarly undefeated in singles. Third-year Marjorie Antohi won in three sets: 7–6 (7–5), 5–7, and 6–3. Second-year Catherine Xu dominated with a 6–2 and a 6–4, as did first-year Eugenia Lee, who recorded a 6–1 and a 6–3. Similarly strong were first-years Nicole Semenov—resplendent with a 6–4 and 6–3 victory—and Lainey Axell, awesome in her 6–1, 6–4 conquest. It was first-year Annika Pandey, however, who took the day’s greatest triumph, obliterating her opponent with a pair of 6–1 sets.
Women’s doubles also impressed. The pairing of Lee and Xu narrowly fell in an 8–5 match, but Pandey and Semenov found success in an 8–3 coup over the Big Red. Antohi and Axell similarly squashed their Denison foes in an 8–3 set.
The Maroon men preserve their No. 3 ranking with a 5–0 record while the Maroon women sit at No. 10 and 4–0. Both squads hope to remain undefeated at home against Cardinal Stritch University next Saturday, February 16. Play begins at 4 p.m.
