FARMVILLE, Va. – It came at the end of a jam-packed homestand, but Longwood women's tennis finally got its first win on its newly paved home court.
Playing its third home match in four days, the Lancers (5-5, 0-4 Big South) righted the ship after back-to-back Big South losses by taking down North Carolina A&T 5-1 Saturday afternoon at the new-look Lancer Courts.
The home court win was months in the making, as an early rainout in February delayed Longwood's home opener until this past Wednesday. Big South dynasty Winthrop and surging rival Radford spoiled the Lancers' first two bouts on their upgraded Longwood Blue courts, but Saturday the Lancers avenged those back-to-back losses by routing the Aggies (0-12) to get back to .500 on the season.
Saturday's victory came in gut-check fashion for newcomer-laden Longwood, which had to grind out three three-set singles wins to clinch the match. Those marathon victories came from the sophomore duo of
Marija Venta and
Jamie Breunig at Nos. 2 and 3, and a clincher from freshman standout
Tanja Skalda at No. 4.
"Today the team was able to make an emotional adjustment after yesterday's loss and close out some long matches," said second-year head coach
Maria Lopez. "Whatever challenges they had today, they were able to come together as a team and pull it off. I am looking forward to seeing them continue that mental and physical growth as a team and take care of the minor details on the court."
The win continued a historic start for the Lancers, who sit at .500 through 10 matches for the first time since 2014-15 and only the third time in the program's 14 years since making the climb from the Division II level.
Longwood entered the match on a three-match losing streak – the team's longest such streak of the season – but snapped that skid on the strength of a doubles point-clinching win from Breunig and
Kaori Terunuma and the three hard-fought singles victories. Venta put Longwood on the board first in singles play, pulling away from No. 2 counterpart Angelica Martinez 6-1, 3-6, 6-1 to give the Lancers a 2-0 lead.
Breunig, whose doubles win alongside Terunuma was the newly formed pair's second straight, followed with a 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 win at No. 3 over Khalia Powell to extend that lead to 3-0. North Carolina A&T responded at the No. 1 slot when Sheyla Ramirez outlasted Longwood freshman
Yulia Almiron 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, but Longwood wins leader Skalda picked up her freshman teammate by grinding out a 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 win over Nadia Hilton-Adams at the No. 4 position.
The match-clinching win for Skalda came in her first appearance as Longwood's No. 4 this season, a promotion she earned by way of a team-best singles record that now sits at 6-2.
The 5-1 victory gives Longwood momentum heading into a four-game road trip, which first takes the Lancers south this weekend for matchups at Big South rivals UNC Asheville on March 23 and Presbyterian on March 24. Longwood will then square off against future Big South foe Hampton the following Friday in Hampton, Va., and at UMES on March 31.
Longwood 5, N.C. A&T 1
Mar 17, 2018 at Farmville, Va. (Lancer Courts)
Singles competition
1. RAMIREZ, Sheyla (NCATW) def. ALMIRON, Yulia (LWUW) 3-6, 6-3, 6-4
2. VENTA, Marija (LWUW) def. MARTINEZ, Angelica (NCATW) 6-1, 3-6, 6-1
3. BREUNIG, Jamie (LWUW) def. POWELL, Khalia (NCATW) 6-3, 3-6, 6-1
4. SKALDA, Tanja (LWUW) def. HILTON-ADAMS, Nadia (NCATW) 6-2, 2-6, 6-4
5. TERUNUMA, Kaori (LWUW) def. RUIZ, Renata (NCATW) 7-6 (7-2), 7-6 (7-5)
6. CANDIOTTO, Julia (LWUW) vs. CHAWLA, Kanishka (NCATW) 3-2, unfinished
Doubles competition
1. RAMIREZ, Sheyla/POWELL, Khalia (NCATW) def. VENTA, Marija/CANDIOTTO, Julia (LWUW) 6-3
2. TERUNUMA, Kaori/BREUNIG, Jamie (LWUW) def. MARTINEZ, Angelica/CHAWLA, Kanishka (NCATW) 6-4
3. ALMIRON, Yulia/SKALDA, Tanja (LWUW) def. No player/No player (NCATW), by default
Match Notes
N.C. A&T 0-12
Longwood 5-5
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (2,3,1,4)
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