Friday's senior day provided the perfect stage for the women's tennis team to end its five-game losing streak.
The Bulls (5-11, 1-5 Mid-American Conference) hosted Northern Illinois (2-12, 0-5 MAC) in their final home match of the season. Buffalo was able to make Aleksandra Petrova's and Diana Popescu's final home match memorable with its 7-0 sweep of the Huskies.
Buffalo earned the doubles point after five weeks of failing to do so. The tandem of freshman Marta Stoyanova and sophomore Shelby Bates started the Bulls' sweep with their 8-2 win over Kelly Phillips and Ilse Pacheco. The teams of Popescu and freshman Miranda Podlas, and Petrova and sophomore Kira Golenko followed up the win by defeating their opponents, 8-2, 8-4.
In singles play, the Bulls won in straight sets in five of the six games played. Stoyanova defeated Emily Rogers 6-3, 6-0 in the first singles game of the meet. Podlas duplicated her effort with a 6-3, 6-0 win over Pacheco. Petrova then beat Martina Schnapp 6-0, 6-1 to clinch the meet for the Bulls.
Bates believed that the win was important because it sent the seniors off on a good note.
"It felt amazing to finally win, especially on senior day," Bates said. "It was a sad day in that it was their last home match, but it was so exciting to see everyone break through and win. The legacy they leave behind will stay with this program for a long time to come."
Next up for the Bulls is a road match at Ball State (7-13, 1-5 MAC) on Friday, with play scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.
Email: sports@ubpsectrum.com
Photo: Courtesy of UB Athletics
