New Mexico’s women’s tennis team swept both of its opponents in a couple of strong showings over the weekend.
The Lobos started the weekend on Saturday against Southern Illinois, winning two out of the three doubles matches to secure the lone point for doubles play.
The team cruised through singles play winning all six individual matches as the schools elected to finish matches even after New Mexico had secured the victory. All six players won the matches in straight sets, resulting in a 7-0 team victory.
Head coach Kelcy McKenna said getting off to a hot start against good teams is very important.
“Anytime we can all come out and play well like that, it’s exciting,” McKenna said.
She said the team still needs to improve on keeping energy and focus up throughout the match, and to execute when leading in games to make sure the team closes out opponents.
On Sunday, New Mexico squared off against Northern Arizona. After splitting the first two doubles matches, the Lobos were able to pull out a victory in the deciding match as Sharon Coone and Rachana Bhat defeated Emelia Box and Jordan Denesik 6-4.
McKenna said Coone and Bhat as doubles partners is a very fun match, primarily because of the great amount of energy they possess when playing together. Bhat and Coone both said they agree that they make a good pair.
“I think we just match each other’s energy really well,” Coone said. “I feel really comfortable with her on the court.”
Bhat and Coone were also impressive in singles play. Bhat secured the first point and Coone picked up final point necessary to seal the team victory by a score of 4-0.
Coone beat Jordan Desenik in straight sets 6-4, 6-3, while Bhat also won in straight sets over Emelia Box, 6-1, 6-2. Emily Olivier picked up the other singles point by making quick work of her opponent, knocking off Northern Arizona’s Blanka Szavay in straight sets 6-0, 6-2.
McKenna said Bhat is one of the most unselfish players she’s ever seen and thinks spring tennis is really fun for her. She said Bhat really plays for her team more than she does for herself, and that showed on Sunday.
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Bhat said she played against her opponent last season during the fall. She said she remembered her game style and that helped her in her match on Sunday.
Ludivine Burguiere won her first set in singles play and had the lead in the second when play when the clinching point was scored. Ruth Copas and Andrea Leblanc each lost the first set, but after making some adjustments both held leads in the second set.
The remaining three matches were not completed, likely due to the event being the second part of a doubleheader for Northern Arizona. Prior to the match against New Mexico, Northern Arizona earned a 4-3 team win over Southern Illinois earlier in the day.
McKenna said getting the doubles points this weekend was extremely important because the team carries that momentum into singles play. The head coach said she was proud of the way the team responded to challenges during the weekend.
“We showed some resiliency, especially (on Sunday) battling some adversity and working through some things,” she said. “We haven’t really had that yet this season yet, so it was exciting to see.”
The Lobos will head to Minnesota next weekend to compete in the Courtside Classic. They will open up on Saturday against Mississippi State and face DePaul or Minnesota on Sunday.
Robert Maler is a sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers cross country, tennis, and track and field. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @robert_maler.
