Saint Mary's (6-7, 1-2 MIAA) beat cross-town rival Bethel Wednesday 7-2, when it came away from the doubles competition with three wins that got it started on the right foot.
"We have been trying to improve in doubles," coach Dale Campbell said. "We also need to work on finishing our singles matches."
The Belles received strong contributions from sophomore Betsy Reed in the match, as Reed teamed up with fellow sophomore Jessica Kosinski to defeat senior Jade Jones and sophomore Serena Frey 8-6.
"My personal goal is to contribute to the team in the best way possible," Reed said. "I want to do what is best for the team so we can achieve our goal of winning conference."
Sophomore Jillian Hurley and junior Camille Gebert also teamed up for a win at No. 1 doubles against senior Bree Oles and sophomore Carrie Edison by the same score.
Sophomores Franca Peluso and Jessica Camp were able to win their No. 3 doubles match 8-5 to earn the sweep for the Belles.
Hurley defeated Jones in straight sets at No. 1 singles, while Gebert defeated Edison by only dropping three games in her match.
"Jade has had a great career for us," Bethel head coach John Natali said. "Carrie Edison has also come on strong again this season playing No. 2 singles and No. 1 doubles. They have shown great leadership on the court."
Kosinski won a tough match at No. 3 singles in three sets by a score of 6-4, 5-7, 10-5 over senior Sherra Millender.
Reed earned her second win of the day at No. 4 singles to round out the victories for the Belles by defeating Frey again while only dropping one game.
Camp dropped her No. 5 singles match against junior Julia Horn 6-3, 6-0, while fellow sophomore Laura Arnold also dropped her No. 6 singles flight against freshman Brittany Anglin.
Next up the Belles will be taking on MIAA rival Kalamazoo Saturday.
"This weekend against Kalamazoo will be a great test for us," Reed said. "We are looking forward to a solid team win."
The Belles are coming off of two tough losses in the conference to Calvin and Albion.
Campbell said he hopes the tough loss to Albion will motivate the team because they know they are close to pulling out those close matches.
The Belles will host Kalamazoo on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m.
