Bulls sweep St. Francis

In its first dual match of the year, the women's tennis team found itself picking up where they left off last season as a Mid-American Conference finals caliber team.

The Bulls (1-0) dominated their match this weekend versus the St. Francis Red Flash (1-7), as they won 7-0. This was the only match the Bulls will host this fall season.

Buffalo was expected to win coming into the match, as the struggling Red Flash have now lost three matches in a row.

"Today we went in to the match as the favorites and we had to keep our focus and work on our strokes," said senior Katrin Fischer. "We need to improve every day no matter who we play against. We need to focus and have good footwork."

In doubles play, senior Miglena Nevona and freshman Denise Harijanto won their match versus Abigail Ball and Eva Keresztes, 8-0.

With the win, Nevona tied the school record for doubles victories, with 59. Nevona is now tied with Kristen Ortman, who is the current assistant coach of the team.

Senior Natalie Dean and junior Tina Jacob had little trouble defeating Ruxandra Ionescu and Mallary Palmer, as the duo took the match, 8-1. The win secured the doubles point for Buffalo. Fischer and junior Smaranda Stan went on to win over Rebecca Seybold and Samanta Fulchiero by the same score.

Playing in the No. 1 singles match, Nevona celebrated her 21st birthday by defeating Ionescu 6-1, 6-1.

Dean, Harijanto, Jacob, and Stan were in complete control and didn't lose a game, as they all defeated their opponents 6-0, 6-0. They overpowered Fulchiero, Danielle Gauthier, Palmer, and Keresztes respectively.

In the last non-exhibition match to be completed, junior Andreea Novaceanu defeated Ball, 6-0, 6-2. Novaceanu, who normally plays in the top spot, was at No. 2 this match because she was returning from injury. She sat out the Bulls' last match with a sore shoulder.

The win completed the sweep, as Buffalo lost only four games in singles play.

After the match was decided, the two teams played four exhibitions matches, which allowed all of the players to see action. This allowed Fischer to add another flawless victory for Buffalo in her match versus Seybold (6-0, 6-0).

"I just tried to keep the ball in play and wait for my opportunity to be working on rallying the ball and controlling the game," Fischer said.

Freshmen Diana Toia, Caitlin Turner, and Gabby Viens also emerged victorious in their exhibition matches. Toia defeated Ashley Zalewski, 6-1, 6-0. Caitlin Turner fought off a close second set to win over Carrie Daubert, 6-1, 7-6 (2). Gabby Viens won versus Maria Cook, 6-3, 6-3.

Head coach Kathy Twist saw that this was an opportunity to learn, despite winning in such a convincing fashion.

"They worked on shots that were out of their comfort zone," Twist said. "If someone played the backcourt more, they were coming to net. We still had goals to work on for this week."

Even after the Bulls won their early matches, they didn't let up. Twist was happy with what she saw.

"I like the fact that they were aggressive," Twist said. "Even when they knew they were going to win this match, they still played aggressively."

Twist acknowledged that there are a few aspects of the game that they could use more work on.

"We could use more consistency in our serves and return," Twist said. "We could come to the net more and put more pressure on our opponents."

These weaknesses were not a factor in the shellacking today. Twist emphasized that she was pleased with the effort the Bulls showed.

"I was very happy with their play," Twist said. "Everybody played today, all ten of our players, and they all played well. They all played hard. They were poised. They were supporting each other on and off the court."

The Bulls look to continue their victorious ways when they head to Ithaca for the Cornell Mock Duals this weekend. The matches will take place all day Saturday and Sunday.