The wins keep piling up for the BG tennis team.
With wins over the University of Illinois at Chicago and Indiana State this past weekend, the Falcons improve to 5-0 in dual-match play – their best start in 25 years.
Up first for the Falcons was UIC – who has captured 11 consecutive Horizon League conference titles and won 93-straight league dual matches. BG extinguished the Flames on Saturday, 6-1.
BG started off with an early 1-0 lead after winning all three doubles flights.
The second-flight tandem of senior co-captains – Andrea Volle and Jenna Nussbaum – got things started for BG as they cruised to an 8-1 victory.
“We stepped on the court and both of us just knew what we had to do and knew how to do it,” Volle said. “We didn’t let up for a point. We were both in the zone. It was a great feeling.”
“They played amazing doubles,” coach Penny Dean said. “Andrea and Jenna really came together this weekend as a doubles team and found their groove.”
The top-flight duo of Kelsey Jakupcin and Christine Chiricosta and the third-flight duo of Katia Babina and Sam Kintzel both rallied to win 8-6 and 8-5, respectively.
In singles play, both Jakupcin and Babina’s matches went to a super-tiebreaker after being deadlocked at the end of two sets. Jakupcin won 11-9 against UIC’s Ilinca Cristescu in the top flight, while Babina lost to Kristen McPhillips, 10-8, in the third flight.
Chiricosta (second flight), Kintzel (fourth), Volle (fifth) and Stefanie Menoff (sixth) were also winners in singles play for BG.
After losing the doubles point against Indiana State on Sunday, the Falcons won four out of six singles matches to win, 4-3.
The duo of Kintzel and Babina picked up the lone doubles win for the Falcons. They beat the Sycamores’ Petrovych/Schickerling, 8-5, in third-flight action.
Even though BG lost two out of the three doubles matches, Dean was still pleased.
“We were closer and played better points than the score indicates,” she said. “We played really good doubles and it’s the competition we faced, it was good for us. We’re only going to get better.”
In singles play, Jakupcin improved to 5-0 at the top flight in dual matches with her win over ISU’s Jennifer Migan. Jakupcin defeated Migan – who was ranked fourth in Midwest Region and 49th nationally – in straight sets with back-to-back scores of 6-4.
In third-flight action, Babina defeated ISU’s Schickerling, 6-1, 6-2, while Menoff – who had to move up to the fourth flight because Kintzel had food poisoning – came-from-behind to beat Fadzai Masiyazi, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.
“She always comes through,” coach Dean said, referring to Menoff’s match. “Her match was the clinching one to beat ISU. She moved to the No. 4 spot, lost the first set, 3-6, and then came through and kind of dominated the girl.”
Rounding out the Falcons’ singles victories was Volle, who picked up her second singles victory over the weekend as she beat the Sycamores’ Marie Caujolle, 6-4, 6-2.
“The past two seasons have been pretty rough for me, so it felt really good this past weekend,” Volle said. “I felt like I played two really good girls, two really good matches and I pulled them both out. That was a really big confidence builder for me.”
Volle is looking forward to the rest of her senior season.
“I’m really positive about the season,” she said. “I’m really excited because I think we have the best team that we’ve ever had in four years that I’ve been here.”
“I really think we will be undefeated before we start MAC play, which would be awesome.”
Two close matches against tough competition will really help the Falcons come Mid-American Conference play, according to Dean.
“It’s just huge because the girls on the team know how good these teams are and how hard they have to compete,” she said.
“It’s the kind of competition we’re going to see from the top teams in the MAC, so every match helps build our confidence.”
The Falcons conclude their six-game homestand this weekend with matches against Detroit on Friday at 6 p.m. and Duquesne on Saturday at 1 p.m. The matches will be held at Shadow Valley Tennis Club in Toledo where BG has won 12 consecutive dual matches.