Despite a loss against Hope, the Saint Mary’s tennis team battled its way back against No. 4 Calvin, earning a 4-3 win. With the victory, the Belles finish their regular season 15-4 overall and 6-2 in the MIAA. The Belles continue to hold the No. 3 position in the MIAA, giving them a pathway to the tournament.
Doubles
The Belles dominated on the doubles courts, as senior Alayna Campbell and junior Emma Kealy took a 6-2 win on the No. 1 court over Catherine Grissom and Marina Ribeiro. Following on the No. 2 court were sophomore transfer Sophia Pischalko and freshman Shannon Dudy, who took another 6-2 win over Ryan Morey and Julia Hooker. Rounding out the competition were sophomore Anna Gardner and freshman Lanie Brant, who pulled through with a 7-6 win to secure the doubles point.
Singles
Brant kicked off the singles matches on the No. 5 court as she won 6-0, 6-4 against Hooker. Kealy followed with a No. 2 court with a swift 6-2, 6-2 win over her opponent, Ana Clara Ornellas, to take the 3-0 lead. Calvin looked to make its comeback as Grissom took the 6-3, 6-2 win over Gardner on the No. 3, but Saint Mary’s quickly came back as Campbell followed with a 6-2, 7-6 win on the No. 1 court to stay ahead 4-1. Ribeiro took a 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 win over Dudy on the No. 4 court and Morey defeated Pischalko 6-3, 6-4 on the No. 6 court to wrap up play. By taking the final two wins, the Belles came out on top with a 4-3 decision.
The Belles now head to the MIAA Tournament, where they will face off against Trine on April 28, starting at 4 p.m. While the Belles hold the No. 3 position, they have a hard tournament in front of them as the top two teams are No. 1 Hope and No. 2 Kalamazoo, both of which the Belles fell to earlier in their regular season, but the Belles prepare to face Trine first. Holding the No. 6 position, Trine enters the tournament coming off a 6-1 loss against Kalamazoo, as it finished the regular season going 12-6 overall and 3-5 in conference play. The two teams met up earlier this season, and the Belles took a quick 6-1 win.
