Sophomore Sophia Alkhouri Stuart prepares herself for the serve against SUNY Fredonia on Saturday Sept. 21. The Knights defeated their SUNYAC opponent 7-2 (Olga Shvetsova/PHOTO EDITOR).
Women’s tennis picked up the win over SUNY Fredonia 7-2 on senior night, led by their captain and lone senior, Sam Montague.
Geneseo went 5-1 in singles matches and 2-1 in doubles to improve to 4-0 in SUNYAC play and 5-0 overall this season, which ties the team for first place with SUNY Oneonta. The day featured the first time all season where the doubles team suffered a loss, while also being the first time the Knights lost more than one match in any matchup.
Saturday was senior night for the team and Montague represented the senior class as she powered her way to wins in both her singles and doubles matches.
The first singles matchup ended with a loss for sophomore Julianna Schulz in three sets as her comeback effort was thwarted, but she would be avenged by Montague who lost her first set but fought back to win in straight sets in what was a hotly contested final two sets.
Sophomore Natalia Krol won her first set 6-3 but lost the second, only to win her next set 6-1 as she moved the Knight’s singles record to 2-1.
Junior Dana Sorrentino won in straight sets in her matchup, but it was far from easy as both athletes gave maximum effort on a day where quick wins were few and far between.
Sophomore Grace Klomp won in straight sets 6-2 and 6-3 respectively, which made the team’s singles record 4-1 on the day. Sophomore Sophia Alkhouri-Stuart finished off the singles matches with another come from behind victory as she went down in the first match 5-7 but went on to win the next two sets 6-1 and 6-2.
The first doubles match was fought tooth and nail by Montague and Sorrentino as they managed to win 8-7 in a contest that looked like it could go either way. Krol and Schulz added to the list of competitive matches with their 8-7 loss to Fredonia. Despite the loss, they should be proud of the effort they gave in nearly winning the match in a tiebreak scenario.
Junior Catherine Gluchowski and her partner Grace Klomp made easy work of their match in an 8-1 win, ultimately giving Geneseo the overall 7-2 win.
Montague not only had an especially good performance versus Fredonia but a special night on her senior night. “Playing on my senior night was surreal, I really can’t believe I’m already a senior,” she said. “Everyone came ready to play today and we really pulled together as a team. It was more than I could have asked for.”
Montague also commented on her play, realizing how well she performed. “I left everything out on the court. Coming back in doubles being down 7-6, to win 8-7 is an amazing feeling. I also got to come back in singles in three sets after dropping the first,” she said. “It’s so satisfying winning the battle. [The match] was a battle about heart, not just for me but the entire team.”
Alkhouri-Stuart was proud of her captain and made it clear what Montague means to the team. “I think it being senior night made the win really special for all of us considering [Montague] has been a really great captain and a huge part of the team.”
“We have a team that wants to win, and our bond makes us even stronger,” Sorrentino said.
Sorrentino’s words embody why the team can win it all this season; this team wants to win and they are all in this together until the end.