ELSAH, IL – The Principia Women's Tennis team continued their winning ways on Saturday as they welcomed the University of the Ozarks Eagles to Hexberg for a dual match.
The Panthers flew through their doubles matches and secured wins in all three. It was a the second win in a row for the #3 doubles duo, Kelsie Huss and Ruth Hummell. The team is more assertive at the net and are winning points with volleys and overheads. The #2 team, Saray Cisneros and Kimbeley Peterson, preyed upon their opponents with hard ground strokes and popping volleys without giving up a game. At #1 doubles, Bissola Lassissi and Veronica Volkart dominated with strong returns and alert poaching from the net player.
Lassissi at #1 singles, Cisneros at #2 singles, Huss at #4 singles, and Peterson at #5 singles all glided through their matches with steady play and accurate landing with their ground strokes and serves. Although these singles matches had fairly lopsided scores, the points were developed and rigorous with strong hitting by both players as many of the games went to the deuce sudden-death point.
At #3 singles, Volkart struggled in the first set to find her range in the court and lost 6-3. In the second set, she took the lead early but then gave it back as she battled to win the set 6-4. In the third set tiebreaker, she steadied her game and cruised to 10-3 victory. Hummell had a tough match at #6 singles with many games falling short on the sudden-death point.
Up Next: The Panthers host a tri match next Saturday against Division II school Truman State at 9:00 am and NAIA Missouri Baptist at 4:00 pm.
