The Bowling Green tennis team lost two critical Mid-American Conference matches by scores of 7-0 Friday and Saturday.
The Falcons’ match against Western Michigan (9-8, 3-2) was moved indoors because of bad weather, but Bowling Green lost all three doubles matches and the six singles matches to a strong Western team.
Lisa Maloney teamed up with Jessica Johnson at No. 1 singles where they played the closest match of the day, but fell 9-7 to Frederika Girsang and Valeria Stoilova.
Despite the loss, Maloney and BG coach Penny Dean felt the matches were close and well fought.
“[Friday] at one point I looked down the courts, and I thought that we were going to win every single match because it looked like we were up,” Maloney said. “We ended up losing 7-0, but we were all playing up a spot because Susie’s [Schoenberger] gone. We played really pretty well. Close matches all the way through.”
Bowling Green’s No. 4, 5 and 6 singles players played the closest matches against Northern Illinois (7-6, 3-2) with Cameron Benjamin just a tiebreaker away from forcing a third set. Meister at No. 5 and Johnson at No. 6 played the day’s longest matches with Meister falling to Kristi McIntyre 6-4, 7-6 (11-9) and Johnson losing to Daniela Martinex 7-6 (7-5), 2-6, 1-0 (11-9).
“Jessica Johnson at No. 6 and Andrea Meister at No. 5, they played really good matches,” Dean said. “They’d get ahead and they’d maybe close it out. They were behind at certain points and they’d fight back. They found a way to deal with the wind.”
The wind was a factor for both teams with gusts over 25 mph. “The wind is pretty brutal,” Maloney said. “It affects everything. You have to move your feet. Sometimes you’re setting up for a forehand and all of a sudden you’re hitting a backhand. You just have to be ready.”
Dean said increased time practicing outside will help the Falcons adjust to the wind as the temperatures warm up.
Despite playing without No. 1 singles and doubles player Susie Schoenberger, who is Washington D.C., Dean thought the matches could have been closer.
“I really thought we played better against Western Michigan than we did against Northern Illinois even though we lost both 7-0, which is discouraging and disappointing,” Dean said. “I’m disappointed about the Northern Illinois match because I thought that even without Susie we’d give them a tough match, and it would be 4-3 one way or the other.”
Bowling Green drops to 9-9 overall and 3-3 in conference play. The Falcons host the MAC’s top team, Marshall this weekend and play host to Miami as well. The Miami match is slated for 1 p.m. Friday with the Marshall match at 1 p.m. Saturday. Both matches will be held at Bowling Green’s Keefe Courts.
