BOSTON – Albany travelled to Norfolk, Virginia, and Merion Station, Pennsylvania and went up against Norfolk State and Saint Joseph’s. Binghamton travelled to Ithaca, New York and took on Cornell, and Hartford took on UMBC in Catonsville. The Retrievers also matched up against the Buckeyes of Ohio State, who are ranked 22nd in the latest ITA poll.
Player of the Week
Madlena Kurasz, UMBC, Junior, Zlotoryja, Poland
- Madlena Kurasz won her at the No. 1 singles spot against fellow conference competitor Hartford. In addtion, she took care of business in her doubles match as well.
- Kurasz teamed with Isabel Aldunate combined to win 6-3 in doubles.
- The junior gathered her victory in singles 6-2, 6-1.
- Kurasz competed against No. 22 Ohio State from the top spot as well, but fell 6-1, 6-2.
- ·With the split over the past week, the Retrievers fall to 4-10 on the year.
Women’s Tennis Notes
- Against Norfolk State, the Great Danes pulled out a close 4-3 victory, aided heavily by the bottom half of the single matches. Alba Sala (6-0, 6-1), Ana Glumac (6-4, 6-1), and Kirsten Scott (default) won their matches in the 4, 5, and 6 singles contests. Combining that with the doubles point, Albany improved to 5-6 on the season. The partnerships of Chassidy King/Scott (6-3), Cheryl Kukkonen/Sala, (6-3) captured the key point for the Purple and Gold. Dajana Ognjenovic and Cheryl Kukkonen also won their doubles match by default.
- The Great Danes second match in the past seven days came against Saint Joseph’s. Albany came out on top again, improving their record to an even 6-6. Dajana Ognjenovic (6-7 (7), 7-5, 6-2), Mireille Hermans (6-4, 6-1), Cheryl Kukkonen (6-2, 4-6, 6-3), and Ana Glumac (6-0, 6-1) won their singles matches, and add on the doubles point as well, it sums up to a 5-2 W.
- Binghamton took on Cornell University and fell underneath the broom, losing 7-0. The long victory for the Bearcats came in doubles, where Annie DiMuro/Olga Ostrovetsky managed an 8-3 win.
- UMBC took on double duty this past Sunday, playing against the Hawks in the morning, and the Buckeyes in the evening. In this case, the early bird did not get the worm as the Retrievers swept Hartford 7-0. Taking all three doubles matches were: Shannon Clearly/Mariami Dolshavili, 7-6 (1), Alice Taylor/Charlotte Tonjann , 6-1, and Isabel Aldunate/Madlena Kurasz, 6-3. Then in the singles competition, the following all took care of business: Kurasz (6-2, 6-1), Dolashvili (6-1, 6-2), Aldunate (6-2, 7-5), Taylor (6-2, 6-2), Clearly (6-1, 6-4), and Tonjann (6-0, 6-0).
- Against the Buckeyes, the same success could not be found. In a matchup that just contained six singles matches, the Retrievers did not register a victory. With the split, UMBC is not 4-10 overall.
Weekly Awards
Feb. 4
Tennis Player of the Week: Dajana Ognjenovic, Albany
Feb. 11
Tennis Player of the Week: Louise Badoche, Stony Brook
Feb. 18
Tennis Player of the Week: Nathalie Habegger, NJIT
Feb. 25
Tennis Player of the Week: Skyler Schaar, Hartford
Mar. 4
Tennis Player of the Week: Sarah Kohtz, Binghamton
Mar. 11
Tennis Player of the Week: Elizabeth Tsvetkov, Stony Brook
Mar. 18
Tennis Player of the Week: Sarah Kohtz, Binghamton
Mar. 25
Tennis Player of the Week: Madlena Kurasz, UMBC