Doubles Teams Shine as Blue Tennis Competes at Bowdoin

BRUNSWICK, Maine – The Wellesley College tennis team had a strong performance on day one of the three-day Bowdoin Invitational on Friday. Overall, Wellesley picked up seven wins between singles and doubles, playing competition from Bowdoin, Bates, and the University of Rochester.

The Blue highlighted the afternoon with a 4-1 record in doubles play. Junior Diana Granger and sophomore Sojung Lee picked up an 8-4 win over Bowdoin's top pair of Kellen Alberstone and Tiffany Chang to open the day, while junior Erica Choo and sophomore Joyce Chen won a tight 9-7 match to Bates' Audrey Grauer and Jenna Burke.

Continuing the fantastic doubles play from the Blue, first-year Suzanne Barth and junior Catherine Matulis won both of their matches on the afternoon. The duo topped Rochester's Julia Weaver and Emily Deperrior, 8-3, to start the day, and closed out the afternoon with an 8-1 win over Eleanor Hough and Madeline Stein.

Wellesley's only doubles loss came as senior Elena Bowen and first-year Ann Martel dropped an 8-4 decision to the tough Rochester pair of Hayley Brower and Janice Zhao.

In singles action, first-year Abby Esrock, Barth and Martel all picked up straight set wins. Esrock topped Bates' Burke, 6-2, 6-1, while Barth was a 6-2, 6-1 winner over Rochester's Zhao. Martel closed out the singles wins with a 6-0, 6-3 victory over Rochester's Weaver.

Also in singles play, Wellesley's Granger took Rochester's Frances Tseng, a top-20 player, to three sets before falling 3-6, 7-6(1), 10-8. Two other Wellesley players took their opponents to three sets before being defeated, as Lee fell to Bowdoin's Cheng, 2-6, 6-3, 11-9, while Matulis dropped a tight match to Bowdoin's Courtney Gallagher, 3-6, 6-3, 10-5.

In the other three singles matches, Chen fell to Bowdoin's Howard, 6-1, 6-1, Choo dropped a 6-3, 6-1 match to Bowdoin's Alberstone, and Bowen fell 7-5, 6-0 to Bates' Alexandra Hakusui.

Action at the Bowdoin Invitational will continue tomorrow.