HAMDEN — Starting at 9 a.m. and ending just past 5 p.m, Quinnipiac women’s tennis had a packed slate for day two of the MAAC Masters Tournament. In the end, the Bobcats wrapped the day with sophomore Willow Renton advancing to the singles final, and Renton and junior Caitlin Flower advancing to the doubles semifinals.
“They were digging deep and working hard,” assistant coach Andrea Angelin said. “[They were] tired out by the hot sun.”
At the start of the day, Quinnipiac had Renton and Flower still in the singles bracket, with junior Anagha Shankar eliminated on Friday. In the doubles bracket, Renton and Flower were joined by Shankar and freshman Emily Meng.
On the singles side, Renton cruised through her first game against Rider sophomore Claire Brown, taking it 6-2, 6-1. Her second game against Fairfield freshman Regina Herrera started similarly, with Renton claiming the first set, 6-1. She then went down 3-4 to Herrera in the second set, but rallied to win three straight matches and claim the set 6-4. With the win, Renton punched her ticket to the singles final on Sunday.
Flower, on the other hand, started the day with grinding out a two hour-fifteen minute marathon against Niagara senior Saloni Tamang. She initially lost the first set 6-3, before prevailing in a back-and-forth second set 7-5 to force the ten-point tiebreaker. Flower and Tamang traded blows fairly evenly in the tiebreaker as well, with Flower jumping out to a 5-1 lead, only for Tamang to bring it to 7-6, then for Flower to extend and claim victory at 10-7.
Flower’s play in such a grueling game reflected the mentality head coach Angelini spoke of after the game.
“You are strong, you’ve got this. All day long you can hit these balls […] let them make the error.”
Flower’s second game against Sacred Heart sophomore Ola Irla Bartyzel proved another difficult one. She struggled in the first set, and lost 6-1, before beginning to rally until eventually running out and losing 6-3.
As for the doubles side, for Renton and Flower the games were fairly straightforward.
The pair opened against Rider freshmen Anna Bong and Lisa Dierick, of which they handled easily, defeating them 6-1. The pair once again proved their No. 1 seeding by taking care of Marist freshman Yasmin Asnis and senior Cloe Clements Sorde, winning 6-2, never losing the lead in either contest. With their two wins, Renton and Flower advanced to the doubles semifinals.
On the other hand, Meng and Shankar faced a day of grinding. After taking a 2-1 lead against Marist sophomore Viktoria Lorentzon and junior Vihana Shresta, they would swap the lead twice before the Quinnipiac pair would pull out in front and win 6-4.
Their second game against the Sacred Heart duo of Bartyzel and freshman Ava Nelson ended up playing out very similarly. Meng and Shankar took a 2-1 lead, but while they would keep the game close, they would not be able to retake it, and Bartyzel and Nelson took victory 6-4.
After a long day of ups and downs, Coach Angelini looked to the future.
“This is our time for training,” she said. “This is what we’re working for for spring.”
Quinnipiac women’s tennis returns to action at Harvard for the ITA Regional Championship starting Oct. 9, times to be determined.
