SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. -- Kutztown University women's tennis broke through for its first win of the season --and the first for head coach
Wyatt Pauley with the program-- sweeping doubles and going on to a 4-3 PSAC East road triumph at Shippensburg Tuesday afternoon.
The Golden Bears pulled away in all three doubles flights to carry a 1-0 lead into singles play. Their top pairing of
Catherine Maher (Shillington, Pa./Berks Catholic) and
Claudia Makarski (Garfield, N.J./Paramus Catholic) won 6-2 over the Raiders' Jenna Sluymer and Jazmin Petrantonio, while the No. 2 team of
Jess Marks (Allentown, Pa./Bethlehem Catholic) and
Brianna Wendling (Kutztown, Pa./Kutztown) and No. 3 team of
Sarah Lazarchak (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth) and
Jessika Klo (Bethlehem, Pa./Freedom) each doubled up their Shippensburg counterparts, 6-3. Lazarchak and Klo improved to a team-best 3-1 on the season in doubles.
KU (1-6, 1-1 PSAC East) picked up early wins in singles to clinch the victory before Shippensburg won the final two matches to make the final result a one-point decision.
Makarski didn't drop a game in a 6-0, 6-0 victory over Brighid Cantwell at No. 2 to put the Bears up 2-0. Sluymer got Shippensburg (0-8, 0-1) on the board with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Maher at No. 1, but Lazarchak quickly responded with a 6-2, 6-0 straight set win against Kayla Tryanski.
Klo's 6-2, 6-4 decision over Brooklynn Rupert at No. 6 provided the fourth and final necessary point for the Maroon and Gold to leave Central Pennsylvania with the match victory.
Marks (No. 3) and Wendling (No. 5) both rallied from a set down to force super tiebreakers, but the Raiders' Kendall Winters held on for a 6-4, 4-6, 10-5 win at No. 3 and Merel Hoekstra edged Wendling 6-4, 3-6, 10-6 at No. 5.
Kutztown is back on the road Saturday to face a Millersville team that reached the PSAC championship match last spring. First serve is scheduled for 1 p.m.
