SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. - The Lake Superior State University men's and women's tennis teams dropped their matches to the Grand Valley State Lakers on Friday, March 25 and the Ferris State Bulldogs on Saturday, March 26 in the opening weekend of Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) play. The men's team fell to GVSU by a final score of 4-0 and the Bulldogs by a 6-1 final score. The women's team dropped their match to Grand Valley by a 4-1 final score and lost to the Bulldogs by one point, 4-3.
Friday, March 25 vs. Grand Valley:
The men's team gave up the doubles point to the GVSU Lakers as all three pairs from Grand Valley won their matches. In singles play, No. 1 Juho Kantola dropped his match in two sets to Josep Canyadell by scores of 6-1 and 6-4. No. 2 player Xavier Vicent Navarro was defeated in two sets (6-1, 6-4) by Sebastain Arce and Krishan Taneja, playing in the No. 3 singles spot for the Lakers, also fell in two sets (6-3, 6-1). With Grand Valley securing four points, the final three matches were not played between the two conference rivals.
In the women's match, the home Lakers clinched the doubles point after winning two of the three matches. Lake Superior's top pair of Nadege Koua and Milena Baigorria won their match by a score of 6-4.
In singles play, the top two pairs, which featured Koua and No. 2 Maddie Whip for LSSU were not played as Grand Valley had sealed the win with four points. Baigorria, playing in the No. 3 spot, fell in two sets (6-0, 6-1) and No. 4 Muskaan Ranjan also dropped her match in two sets (7-5, 6-2). Claudia Sole fell in two sets (6-4, 6-2) in the No. 5 match. Julia Fraile Raton, the Lakers No. 6 player, won in back-to-back sets by scores of 6-1 and 6-2.
Saturday, March 26 vs. Ferris State:
The Lakers men's team gave up the doubles point to the Bulldogs after only winning one of the three doubles matches. The team's top pair of Kantola and Aaron Osmond won their match in a tiebreaker (7-6). In singles play, No. 5 Osmond won his set in three sets by scores of 6-4, 1-6, and 10-8 to earn a point for the Lakers. Ferris State won the five other singles matches against LSSU.
The women's match between the conference opponents was very competitive. The Bulldogs won the doubles point, winning two of the three matches. For the second day in a row, the Lakers top pair of Koua and Baigorria won their match. LSSU's No. 1 pair won in a tiebreaker.
In singles play, Noua was defeated in a tough three-set match in the top singles match. Koua won the first set by a score of 7-5, and fell in a tiebreaker in the second set (7-6). In the decisive third set, Ferris State's Daavettila won by a score of 6-3 to take the point. Freshman Maddie Whip, playing in the No. 2 spot, won her match in two sets by two sets (6-2, 6-3). Baigorria won the No. 3 match after a retirement by the Bulldogs player in the opening set. In the No. 5 match, Sole won the first set in a tiebreaker and posted a 6-3 second set win to clinch the Lakers third point.
The Bulldogs won the No. 4 match, which included Ranjan, and the No. 6 singles match, which included Fraile Raton, to record the 4-3 match win over the Lakers.
What's Next
The women's team will return home for a single conference game against Saginaw Valley State on Saturday, April 2. The match is set for a 10:00 a.m. start at the Student Activity Center in the Norris Center in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.
For more information, visit lssulakers.com
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