By David Balick and Jake Grogan
The Fordham men’s and women’s tennis teams were both in action over the past week. The men fell 6-1 to the University of St. Louis at Life Time Athletic in Harrison, New York on Sunday. The team’s lone point of the day came from freshman Pol Giraldez in his singles match.
“I was patient against a very defensive player, and finally won with a lot of hustle in the third set,” Giraldez said after the match.
In his match, Giraldez jumped out to an early lead, winning the first set 6-4.
His opponent battled back, taking the second set 6-1, but Giraldez was able to win the final set 6-3, giving him the win and his team its lone point of the day.
In doubles, the men struggled to gain an edge. They lost each of its completed doubles matches. The team of junior Pedro Alonzo and Giraldez lost 8-2, while the team of freshmen Joey Brander and Joseph Kavaloski lost by a score of 8-1.
In the other singles matches, Fordham was unable to pull out a victory. Senior J.J. Tauil battled back from a loss in the first set by winning his second set, 6-2. But, he was beaten in the final set, 6-1.
Junior Pedro Alonzo took his first set to a tie break, but lost the tiebreaker 7-4. He went on to lose the second set by the same score.
Senior Max Peara lost his match in consecutive sets, 6-1, 6-2.
The Rams will look to get back in the win column in their upcoming match at Sacred Heart on Saturday, March 14.
The women also struggled this week, despite a valiant effort by the team’s underclassmen. The team returned from West Point last Thursday, having lost a close one to the Drexel University Dragons.
Fordham opened the contest by narrowly missing out on what would end up being the crucial doubles point. Freshman Estelle Wong and senior Julie Leong, who came up big for the Rams, won their set 8-6, while seniors Anna Novacek and Bella Genkina fell by a score of 8-3. The Dragons dug deep and edged out Fordham seniors Elliesa Ball and Sarah Ali 8-7, securing the point going in to singles play.
The latter portion of the contest saw improved play by the Rams, as Ali secured the team’s first point at second singles, beating out Drexel’s Erin Bowsher in three sets. The back of the lineup featured a dominant display by the team’s underclassmen, as Wong won her match at third singles 6-2, 6-2 while sophomore Destiny Grunin locked up a win at fifth singles 6-1, 6-1.
The lost doubles point would be the tie breaker, as the Dragons and the Rams split the singles matches 3-3. Fordham’s squad will return to the court on Monday, March 16 in Orlando, Florida, where they will face the Savannah School of Design.
