MEDFORD, Mass. – Senior captain Alexa Meltzer of the No. 12 Tufts University women's tennis team posted a match-clinching win during No. 5 singles on Wednesday, as the Jumbos defeated No. 18 Brandeis, 6-3, in Medford, Massachusetts.
The Jumbos (5-1) went 5-1 in singles action during their home opener, while the Judges (8-3) posted a 2-1 mark in doubles action. The Jumbos have come out of the gates flying this spring, as they have compiled a 28-8 record in singles action and a 12-6 mark on the doubles side under head coach Kate Bayard.
The two squads treated spectators to a great brand of tennis during No. 1 and 2 doubles, as both events came down to the wire. In No. 1 doubles, freshman Sabrina Ross Neergaard and sophomore Olivia Leavitt outlasted sophomore Mina Karamercan and senior Jacqueline Baum, 8-6.
Freshman Katherine Wiley and sophomore Otilia Popa left it all on the court during No. 2 doubles, but sophomore Sophia He and junior Haley Cohen posted a 9-8 (9) victory. The Jumbos responded with a convincing 8-3 win in No. 3 doubles, as senior captain Conner Calabro and sophomore Tomo Iwasaki outperformed sophomores Keren Khromchenko and Michele Lehat.
Karamercan led the Jumbos at No. 1 singles, as she cruised to a 6-0, 6-4, victory over Ross Neergaard. Junior Lauren Louks dropped opening-set action, 2-6, to Cohen during No. 2 singles, and then responded with back-to-back victories, 6-2, 6-0.
Iwasaki hit the ground running in No. 3 singles, by winning the first set, 6-0. Khromchenko responded with a 6-3 win in the second set, and then closed out the battle with a 7-5 triumph in the must-win third set. Wiley defeated Leavitt in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4, during No. 4 singles.
Meltzer posted a commanding 6-2 victory in opening-set action during No. 5 singles against He, and then she clinched the entire match for the Jumbos with a 6-4 triumph during the second set. Calabro ended the event in style for the Jumbos, as she downed Lehat, 6-2, 6-0, in No. 6 singles.
The Jumbos will open up their NESCAC Conference schedule on Saturday, as the squad will compete at Bates (10 a.m.) and Colby (3:30 p.m.).
Written by Trevor Wenners, Athletic Communications Intern
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