The winning tradition continued for the Elizabethtown College women’s tennis team as they defeated Susquehanna University and Harford Community College. The Monday match against Susquehanna was postponed due to rainy conditions, so the team traveled to Susquehanna on Thursday, April 23 to battle some unseasonably cold temperatures. Despite the snow flurries, the Blue Jays won their 40th consecutive conference match with a score of 6-0.
The Blue Jays worked extremely hard this season having not lost a league match in over five seasons in the Commonwealth Conference to establish themselves in the Landmark Conference. This match against Susquehanna allowed them to complete their unbeaten conference season 7-0.
Etown and Susquehanna decided to forego the three doubles matches since the conditions were less than favorable for tennis. With temperatures in the low 40’s and winds, the teams were encouraged to move as fast as possible. Senior Christine Evangelista swept her first singles and junior Lauren Berry dropped only one game in a 6-1, 6-0 defeat of her opponent. The Blue Jays went ahead 3-0 with senior Kaitlyn Pellegrino’s 6-2, 6-3 win over her singles opponent leading Etown to winning all six singles matches in straight sets. Sophomore Taylor Helsel dominated with a 6-1, 6-3 victory and first-year Sam Procak had a 6-1, 6-2 win. Sophomore Madison McCall completed Elizabethtown’s 14th win of the season with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over number four seed Linsey Sipple.
The women’s tennis team also had a match against Harford Community College on Saturday at home. This match counted for Harford, but because of NCAA rules this match is excluded from Etown’s overall record. The Blue Jays won 9-0.
McCall reflected on the past few matches saying that she believes she and her team have been “staying focused and confident every game and every point” throughout the season. She is excited to be moving into the Landmark Conference Championships, but she always remains humble and remembers that they are not guaranteed a win even if they won against a team earlier in the season. “Every match could be our last,” McCall explained. “I am excited to see how far we can go as a team and am looking to finishing out another season with the girls I love.”
The Blue Jays defeated Catholic University 5-2 yesterday to advance to the Landmark Championship match on Saturday afternoon. Etown will host the championship match.
Etown won five of the six singles matches and two of the three doubles matches to take down the Cardinals.
The University of Scranton defeated Juniata College 5-4 to advance to face the Blue Jays on Saturday at 1 p.m.
