SOUTH HADLEY/NORTHAMPTON, Mass. - The Mount Holyoke College tennis team had a solid day of action to open play at the 2018 New England Intercollegiate Tennis Tournament (NEWITT) on Friday afternoon. The event, which is being held at both Mount Holyoke and Smith Colleges, saw the Lyons advance two pairs into the semifinal rounds of the main and consolation draws. Five different duos took to the court, each bit of action laid out below.
In the A draw, Lyons' senior Ayame Yazawa and junior Ching-Ching Huang took on a tough MIT pair of Zhang and Guenther. The Engineers duo won in doubles by an 8-0 margin and Huang posted a 6-1, 6-2 loss to Guenther. Yazawa picked up the lone point for MHC, earning a 7-5, retired match against Zhang. The pair then advanced into the consolation round of the A draw, battling Colby-Sawyer's Kopituk and Yang to a 2-1 score for the win. The Lyons pair bested the Chargers doubles team by an 8-6 margin. Heading into singles, Huang bested Kopituk, 8-3, while Yazawa shouldered an 8-0 loss to Yang. Saturday's action will see Yazawa and Huang play in the consolation semifinals, but not before 11am at Smith College.
In the B draw, Mount Holyoke saw junior Catherine Peabody and rookie Anissa Aamoum have a number of outstanding efforts. The pair opened action against Colby-Sawyer's Gemerek and O'Connor, earning an 8-6 win in doubles. Peabody went on to earn a 3-6, 6-4, 10-2 victory against Gemerek, while O'Connor took a 6-1, 6-2 score over Aamoum to give the Lyons a 2-1 edge and advance. The duo will face off against Barnett and Fitzgibbons from Endicott in the B draw semifinals, beginning at 9am on Saturday at MHC.
C draw action opened with MHC seniors Madison Rosen and Clara Wang facing off against Trinity's Everett and Weber. The Bantams pair won doubles by an 8-1 margin, followed by Everett besting Rosen, 6-0, 6-1, while Weber earned a 6-2, 6-3 win over Wang. The duo slid into the consolation round, taking on Western New England's LaPress and Schrader. In doubles, the Golden Bears duo won 8-4, while Schrader defeated Wang in singles, 8-1. Rosen earned the lone point for the Lyons, earning an 8-7 (7-2) victory over LaPress.
Other C draw action saw rookie Susan Li and senior Joy Maran take on Springfield's Freedman and Higgins in the opening draw. Doubles saw the Pride earn an 8-2 win, while Freedman defeated Li, 6-3, 6-0 in singles. Maran earned the Lyons point with a 6-4, 6-4 victory against Higgins. The pair moved into the consolation round, taking on a duo from Endicott. In doubles, Li and Maran took on McCormack and Barmore, shouldering a tough 8-1 loss. Barmore then took on Maran, gaining a narrow 8-6 victory, while Li took on Endicott's Losano, falling 8-1.
Mount Holyoke's final duo opened in the D draw as rookies Hannah Middleton and Nikki Cheng suffered a tough 8-5 doubles loss to Gordon's West and Groves. Singles action saw Middleton post a 6-4, 6-2 victory over West, while Cheng lost a hard-fought 6-4, 1-6 (10-4) loss to Barlotta. The pair then moved on to face Babson's Martinson and Perreault in the consolation round. Following an 8-0 doubles loss, Middleton earned an 8-2 singles win over Martinson. Cheng suffered a tough 8-5 loss to Perreault.
Action at NEWITT continues on Saturday. As a reminder, Yazawa and Huang will play in the A draw consolation semifinals after 11am, while Peabody and Aamoum will battle in the B draw main semifinals at 9am at Mount Holyoke.
