MEN'S BOX SCORE
WOMEN'S BOX SCORE
WORCESTER, Mass. - The Hartford men's and women's tennis teams came into Saturday's matches at Holy Cross looking to finish their fall dual match schedules on an upswing, and they did just that as both teams emerged victorious. Hartford's women came back from a 3-1 early deficit to win, 4-3, when
Kaitlin Lennon won the final match on the court 6-3, 6-2. Meanwhie,
Aneil Bhalla earned the clinching point for the men for a second consecutive match as he won 6-1, 6-4 and the Hawks grabbed a 6-1 triumph. The wins were the first for Hartford against Holy Cross since head coach Michael Raymond took over the squads four seasons ago. For the men, the win was especially sweet as they got over the hump against the Crusaders after dropping four straight 4-3 decisions over the past two seasons.
On the women's side, Hartford got off to a slow start as they dropped the doubles point, and only No. 2
Katina Zampas earned a victory in the first three singles matches to wrap up. Zampas earned a 6-2, 6-3 win from the second position to get the Hawks on the board, leaving them down 3-1 with three matches to play.
The first wave of singles matches concluded with
Nicole Haynal sealing a 6-2, 6-3 win at No. 4, pulling the Hawks back within a point of Holy Cross in the overall match score at 3-2. The match was quickly squared up when
Lauren Coggins cruised to a 6-0, 6-2 triumph from the fifth position.
With things all evened up at 3-3, only
Kaitlin Lennon remained on the court for Hartford, battling Holy Cross' Jen Daffron at No. 6 singles. Lennon won the first set, 6-3, and with the entire Hawks team cheering her on from the sidelines, she responded with a strong 6-2 win in the second set to wrap up her match and give the Hawks a 4-3 team victory.
The men also fell behind early, as Holy Cross took two of the three doubles matches to take the doubles point and an early 1-0 lead. From there, though, the Hawks dominated. There would be no close call this time, as the Hawks rolled in singles play with six individual victories. Playing at No. 1 singles, junior
Aneil Bhalla snagged a 6-1, 6-4 victory for the Hawks' fourth and deciding point. None of the Hartford players required tiebreakers to win, and the men came away with a 6-1 overall victory.
Both squads finish their fall dual match schedule with records of .500 or better. The women are 2-2, with wins over St. Francis (NY) and Holy Cross this weekend. The men, who also swept the weekend's matches, sit at 3-1, having also earned a 4-3 victory over Siena last month. One more tournament awaits the men before the winter break, as they will take part in the Connecticut College Championships at Yale this weekend.
