After having a win streak of 10, the Saint Mary’s Belles tennis team winning streak ended as they fell 6-0 against No. 1 ranked Hope College.
Doubles
Starting in the doubles competition, the No. 2 courts was the first to finish, but the duo of sophomore Sophia Pischalko and freshman Shannon Dudy fell short, losing 6-1 against Hadley Krygier and Miyako Coffey. Quickly following was the No. 1 court as Hope continued to dominate taking the similar 6-1 win over senior Alayna Campbell and junior Emma Kealy with the help of Sullivan Moran and Amanda Lopykinski. Last to finish was the No. 3 court where Hope secured the point, winning 6-4 over sophomore Anna Gardner and freshman Lanie Brant thanks to Phoebe Walker and Kaitlyn Stievater.
Singles
Hope College continued to dominate on the courts in the singles competition. Court five finished first, but Brant took the 6-1, 6-1 loss against Madison Wei. Quickly following was the No. 3 court with Gardner taking the 6-2, 6-2 loss against Morgan. Cross court, Kealy fell short on the No. 2 court 6-2, 6-2 against Krygier and nearly a second later Campbell fell 6-2, 6-1 on the No. 1 court against Lopykinski. Pischalko competed on the No. 6 court and lost 6-3, 6-2 to opponent Stievater and as the No. 5 court was unfinished, Hope took the final 6-0 win and their seventh win in the MIAA.
With this loss the Belles now fall to 14-4 on the season and 5-2 in conference play. For Hope College, the team now moves to 14-6 on the season and 7-0 in the MIAA. The Flying Dutch continue to be undefeated in the MIAA as the look to face off against Albion following Easter break. Saint Mary's now takes a short break before they compete again at home next week against Calvin University on April 15 starting at 4 p.m. to conclude their regular season.
Additionally, the Belles now hold the No. 3 position in the MIAA. Being one of the top teams, the Belles also look towards the opportunity to compete in the MIAA tournament with the schedule not set yet. Last year, the Belles competed in the tournament but fell short in the championship losing to Hope College 5-0.
