FULL RESULTS
SEATTLE, Wash. – The Eastern Washington University women's tennis team began the regular season strong with two wins over the weekend, putting them 2-0 overall. The Eagles competed against a tough Seattle University team and came out on top 5-2 at the end of the day (Jan. 21).
"Today was a really nice way to finish the weekend," said head coach Dustin Hinson. "We always know that our matches with Seattle U can go either way. They are a tough team and I thought we did a nice job of focusing on our game plans and tactics throughout each match. We competed with the kind of hunger and fight I like to see out there."
Senior Janaya Smith and freshman Rylee Braeden teamed up in the No. 1 spot for the second time this weekend to play a tough doubles match against SU's Michelle Lui and Kelli Woodman, coming away with a 7-6(5) win.
"Our doubles play was good and we did what we needed to do to get the point. Number one doubles came back from 5-0 down to win 7-6 and clinch the doubles point for us. That shows the kind of fight we had out there," said Hinson.
Freshman Zoey Nelson and junior Faye Worrall followed with a 6-3 victory over SU, as well as freshman Stephanie Broussard and senior Rachel Swindell who paired up and played a tough match but lost 5-7.
In singles play, Smith competed in the No.1 spot and played a long three sets against Michelle Lui from Seattle but fell short (1-6, 6-4, 3-6). Braeden fell 4-6, 3-6 in the No. 2 spot against Hannah Gianan.
"We played very well in singles and had some really nice wins at spots 3, 4, 5, and 6. This shows the kind of depth we have as a team, which is definitely an advantage for us," said Hinson. Nelson returned to beat Kyra Jung (6-3, 6-4) as well as Worrall who had success against Kelli Woodman and won (6-3, 6-3). Broussard played a tough match against SU's Kali McCollister and came away with the win 6-3, 7-6(4). Swindell beat her opponent 7-6(6), 6-1 to seal the team win for the Eagles.
The Eagles now sit at 2-0 overall and Seattle is 0-2. EWU will take the next couple weeks to get ready for Alabama on Feb. 10. "We are ready to get back to training this week so we can continue building for our upcoming matches," said Hinson.
For more information on Eastern Washington's women's tennis team, follow @EWUAthletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
