It's been an emotional season both on and off the court for the women's tennis team, but the Bulls put all of that behind them last weekend and ended the regular season near the top of the Mid-American Conference as they sealed a second-place conference finish with two wins.
On Friday, the Bulls competed against Miami (Ohio) as teams with identical records. The Bulls' home court advantage proved too much for the RedHawks as they fell to the Bulls, 4-3. Buffalo then followed up with another home win on Saturday over Ball State, 5-2.
The wins gave Buffalo six straight victories as well as the team's highest seed ever heading into the MAC tournament.
"My players are just as hard working as the ones in the past except these girls are more talented," said head coach Kathy Twist. "You need to commit to be a champion and so far they have been committed."
Against Miami, the Bulls swept all three doubles contests to take the first point of the match. The Bulls' No. 1 tandem of sophomores Andreea Novaceanu and Tina Jacob began the action by defeating Katrina Lomidze and Linda Jirouskova, 8-3.
The No. 2 team of senior Kristen Ortman and junior Miglena Nenova clinched the point with an 8-5 win over Remy Swain and Maura Trauernicht. The tandem was trailing in the match 5-4, before closing it by winning four straight games.
The No. 3 tandem of sophomore Natalie Dean and junior Katrin Fischer's match was the most exciting as they met Lesa Pesatova and Victoria Pulido. The match was forced into a super tiebreaker and the Bulls won 8-7 overall. The two are perfect so far this season compiling a 5-0 record.
The Bulls started the singles matches by clinching the first set in all six contests. Novaceanu, the No. 1 singles player, was the first to seal a victory for the Bulls with a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Lomidze. Novaceanu improved her overall record to 25-5 extending her record for wins in a single season. Nenova at No. 2 singles was also a victor downing Pesatova, 6-4, 6-1.
Fischer sealed the match at No. 4 singles in a heated exchange with Miami's Kelly Douple. Fischer won the first set after 13 games, 7-6. The second test was easier for Fischer as she won 6-2 and extended her overall singles record to 11-3.
"We are excited to be in second place in the MAC," said senior captain Ortman.
On Saturday, after facing Miami, the Bulls faced Ball State, who was 3-4 overall going into Saturday's match. The Bulls clinched the match 5-2 at the University Tennis Center.
Buffalo opened the match by winning two of the three doubles matches to collect the first point. The Bulls No. 2 and No. 3 tandems scored easy wins. Ortman and Nenova downed Katie Owens and Jennifer Pollack, 8-5, in the No. 2 contest. At No. 3 doubles, Dean and Fischer scored an 8-2 win over Emma Retter and Rachel Lemar.
Ball State won the No. 1 doubles match in tiebreaker fashion. Jessica Thompson and Haly Calderwood defeated the Bulls' Novaceanu and Jacob 7-5 in the tiebreaker to score an 8-7 win. The Bulls looked flawless heading into singles play.
Saturday was senior day and the match focus was on Bulls lone senior Ortman. Ortman playing at four singles was able to defeat Owens 6-4, 6-4. Ortman leaves the Bulls with 59 career singles wins, the most in school history.
"I tried not to think about emotion. I just wanted to finish off the season strong," Ortman said.
The Bulls also secured singles victories at No. 2 as Nenova defeated Pollack, 6-1, 6-2. Fischer downed Retter in straight sets, 7-5, 7-5, at No. 5. Jacob easily defeated Lemar, 6-2, 6-0, at No. 6 singles.
"We have increased talent and the communication this year," Ortman said.
The only disappointment for Buffalo came at the No. 1 singles when Ball State's Jessica Thompson upset Novaceanu, 6-3, 6-4. It was the second loss for Novaceanu in three matches, who was the MAC player of the week last week and now has an overall record of 25-6 on the season.
The Bulls walk into the MAC Championships as the No. 2 seed after securing the two wins this weekend. The Bulls face off aganist Bowling Green in their first match of the tournament. The Falcons are one of only two MAC teams to defeat the Bulls this season.
The match will take place on Friday at Bowling Green. Heading into the tournament the Falcons were tied with Ball State for sixth place with a 3-5 MAC record, however, because of a loss to Ball State, Bowling Green becomes the seventh seed.
"We want to redeem our loss from earlier in the season," Ortman said. "We are focused and ready."
Photo: Courtesy of Matthew Messina, from the RMBERS' Instagram page
