By Chris Spiker
Staff Writer
The Binghamton Bearcats shut out the St. Bonaventure women’s tennis team, 7-0, last Saturday at the SBU Fitness Center in Olean despite three Bonnies forcing a third set in their singles matches.
Coach Michael Bates said the Bonnies (5-10, 0-2) could not capitalize on opportunities in singles against the Bearcats.
“We were right in it at every chance,” Bates said. “We just didn’t finish the match out as well as we wanted to.”
Junior Marisa Brossard rebounded from a 6-1 deficit in the first set against Alexis Tashiro, winning the second set, 6-1. But Tashiro countered for the victory in first singles, capturing the third set, 6-1.
Junior Fatya Amiri won the first set against Sara Kohtz in second singles, but Kohtz fought back to win, 2-6, 7-5, 6-3. Freshman Mariam Skhirtladze also won in the first set of fourth singles, but lost to Katherine Medianik, 3-6, 6-2, 6-0.
As of Wednesday, Bates said La Salle may not be able to field a full women’s team for tomorrow’s match. But, he wants the women to get more match experience before the Atlantic 10 championships April 17-20.
“If we play how we’re capable of playing, we should do well,” Bates said. “Hopefully, we can keep working on doubles this week and get a little better.”
This weekend, the men (4-13, 0-3) will seek to improve on their two match winning streak and also grab their first conference win. The Bonnies defeated Roberts Wesleyan on March 15 and won at Loyola (Md.) on March 23.
The men’s and women’s tennis teams will host La Salle tomorrow, with the men’s match at 10 a.m. and the women’s match at 3 p.m. The men’s team will also challenge Youngstown State at noon.
After a week of rest, recovery and practice, Bates said that the men will work on improving their individual weaknesses in every remaining regular season match.
“Now it’s crunch time because we only have five matches left before the A-10 championships,” Bates said. “Hopefully, we can stay focused and keep improving.”
