Tennis Rolls Into Conference Tournament With Vim

The men's and women's tennis teams are coming to the end of what has been a long season. Both teams are preparing for the conference tournament, to be held May 4-5 at Denison University in Granville, OH.

The Yeowomen have faced some tough obstacles in recent matches. On April 21, the women headed for Milwaukee, WI to participate in the Midwest Invitational at the Cherokee Country Club. The women's first match was against University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, which turned out to be a lopsided affair. Sophomore Sarah Jesse defeated Heather Hearn 7-5, 6-1 in first singles, and senior Jill Brockelman defeated Becky Stoffel 6-2, 6-4 in third singles. The rest of the Yeowomen were not as fortunate, though. First-year Alaina Fotiu-Wojtowicz, first-year Laura Koehn, first-year Leah Corn and junior Beth Krupski all lost in straight sets. All three doubles teams also lost.

Oberlin's next opponent was conference rival Denison, who lost to Washington University of St. Louis 9-0 in their previous match. Jesse turned in another strong performance, defeating Kristen Hanto 6-2, 6-2, while Fotiu-Wojtowicz defeated Molly Smith in second doubles 6-3, 6-3. The women suffered defeats in 3-6 singles, as Brockelman, Krupski, Corn and junior Robin Richardson lost in straight sets.

The women mounted a comeback, however, tying the score at 4 on wins by Jesse/Fotiu-Wojtowicz and Brockelman/Krupski. The burden fell to Richardson and Koehn, who faced Denison's Elizabeth Kurlander and Heather Frick in third doubles. The Kurlander/Frick duo came into the match with an impressive 11-2 record in third singles, including wins over the third singles teams of Wooster and Wittenberg. Koehn and Richardson were unable to stay with Kurlander and Frick, who won 8-4, giving Denison a 5-4 victory. This loss, along with the one from the day before, gave the Yeowomen a 13-7 record on the season.

The women's next opponent was Calvin College from Grand Rapids, MI, who came into the match with an 11-2 record. Things started well for Oberlin, with Jesse defeating Kait Disselkoen 6-1, 6-1. Calvin recovered quickly, though, and ran off seven straight wins to take the match 7-1. The Yeowomen fell to 13-8 with the loss.

After a disappointing stay in Wisconsin, the women traveled to Meadville, PA to take on the Allegheny Gators. In singles competition, Jesse was again able to walk over her opponent, winning 6-0, 6-1. Fotiu-Wojtowicz was also victorious, vanquishing her opponent 6-1, 3-6, 7-6, 9-7. Brockelman and Beth Krupski also walked away with individual victories.

The Yeowomen had a more difficult go of it in doubles competition, as only the duo of Jesse/Fotiu-Wojtowiz was able to triumph over their Allegheny foe (8-6). Nonetheless, the Yeowomen walked away with a 5-4 victory, improving their record to 14-8.

The men's tennis team has had a hard time of late, suffering defeats to Allegheny, Kenyon and Denison. The Gators lost only one set en route to a 7-0 victory, which dropped the Yeomen's record to 6-11.

The Yeomen took on conference opponent Kenyon on April 24th. The Yeomen once again ran into a wall, as first-year Jason Criscione was the only Oberlin player to emerge victorious. Kenyon's 6-1 victory upped their record to 11-5. Oberlin's record fell to 6-12.

"I think the team has stayed really consistent and we have played much better than we were expected to," said junior Mike Shelton. "I am excited about the upcoming conference tournament."

"We have had a really strong season," said Criscione. "We haven't had as many wins as we may have hoped for, but we have had lots of fun. We play Denison in the first round, but we are still looking to place third of fourth."

The Yeomen host Alma College Saturday at 10am.