SAINTS EARN IMPORTANT VICTORY

OVER NEW PALTZ, 8-1

Mar. 30: The St. Lawrence University women’s tennis team bounced back nicely from a loss on Saturday with an impressive 8-1 victory against SUNY New Paltz in the Newell Field House on Sunday morning. The win moves the Saints to 5-2 overall on the season, and may be critical to the team’s chances of earning a berth to the NCAA Championships later this season.

The Scarlet and Brown set the tone early against the Hawks (7-4), taking an early 3-0 lead in the doubles portion of the match. Senior Kirsten Lannon and sophomore Chelsea Hubbell defeated Dana Lim and Eri Yamakawa at No. 1 doubles 8-1, while the tandem of sophomore Casey Gilman and rookie Stephanie Finn continued to play at a high level with an 8-5 victory at No. 2 over Laura-Elizabeth Beirne and Lyndsey Lovinger.

The Saints earned the sweep in doubles thanks to their co-captains, as junior Teresa Rodriguez and sophomore Liz Ronty defeated New Paltz’s Kerri Serkes and Stephanie Schara at No. 3 doubles, 8-4.

St. Lawrence continued to string together wins in the singles portion and ensured themselves of the important win thanks to clutch play from the top of their line-up. Lannon held off Lim at No. 1 singles, 6-4, 6-4, while Finn was simply too much for Beirne at the No. 2 spot, winning 6-0, 6-0.

After dropping the first set to Yamakawa 1-6, Gilman rebounded with a 6-1 second set victory and won her match at No. 3 singles with a 7-6 (2) win in the tiebreak. Rodriguez and Hubbell managed to win in straight sets against Lovinger and Serkes at No. 4 and 5 singles, while New Paltz’s lone point came at the No. 6 spot where Schara defeated first year student Mackenzie Hall, 6-4, 6-4.

St. Lawrence will look to build momentum early in the spring as they welcome Nazareth and Rochester to Canton, NY next weekend, Saturday and Sunday, April 5 and 6.

FINN SWEEPS BOTH MATCHES, BUT SAINTS FALL

TO THE COLLEGE OF NEW JERSEY

Mar. 29: First year student Stephanie Finn, who was last week’s Liberty League “Co-Performer of the Week,” continued her outstanding play this spring with wins in both of her matches against the College of New Jersey on Saturday in the Newell Field House. However, the Lions showed why they’re one of the premier teams in the Northeast Region, defeating St. Lawrence by the score of 7-2.

Finn teamed with sophomore Casey Gilman to pick up St. Lawrence’s lone point in doubles competition against TCNJ, as the duo defeated Amanda Berg and Sarah Roser 8-3 at the No. 2 slot.

However, the Lions rebounded with wins at both No. 1 and 3 doubles to take a 2-1 lead into singles play. Jackie Shtemberg and Christina Contrafatto defeated senior Kirsten Lannon and sophomore Chelsea Hubbell 8-5 at the top spot, while Stefanie Haar and Haley Kutner beat St. Lawrence’s co-captains Teresa Rodriguez and Liz Ronty at No. 3 doubles, 8-0.

Finn would again provide the only point for the home team in singles play, this time knocking off a ranked individual in the Northeast region. The Goldens Bridge, NY native outplayed Berg, 6-2, 6-2 to continue her great play this spring and improving to 11-2 overall in singles play this season.

The College of New Jersey was simply too much for St. Lawrence, however, winning the remaining five singles matches in straight sets to hand the Saints their second consecutive loss.

Shtemberg earned a 6-1, 6-0 win over Lannon at No. 1 singles, while Contrafatto defeated Gilman at the No. 3 slot, 6-1, 6-2. Haar and Kutner swept their matches on the day with wins over Rodriguez and Hubbell, respectively, while Roser defeated rookie Mackenzie Hall at No. 6 singles, 6-4, 6-3.

“Stephanie (Finn) has been playing at a very high level, and I’m very proud of the effort we put forth today against one of the best teams in the nation,” said Saints head coach Jeremy Freeman. “However, we have a very important match against SUNY New Paltz tomorrow, and we’ll need to match our intensity from today’s match to win it.”

St. Lawrence will take on the Hawks from SUNY New Paltz tomorrow, Sunday, March 30 in the Newell Field House.

FINN RECEIVES WEEKLY CONFERENCE ACCOLADES

Mar. 25: Rookie Stephanie Finn was named Liberty League Co-Performer of the Week on Mondayafter leading the St. Lawrence women’s tennis team to a 2-1 week during their Spring training trip in Hilton Head, South Carolina.

Finn (Golden Bridges, NY/John Jay High) finished with a perfect 6-0 record last week. The Goldens Bridge, NY native defeated each of her opponents from Richard Stockton, Mississippi College and Hope College at No. 2 singles in straight sets. Finn and her partner also breezed through their matches at No. 2 doubles, never allowing their opponents to win more than four games.

The Saints return to action Saturday, March 29 as they host The College of New Jersey in Newell Fieldhouse, with matches scheduled to begin at noon.