HERSHEY Pa. - The Haverford College Women's Tennis team (8-7, 5-2 CC) looked strong against Franklin & Marshall (7-7, 5-2 CC) with a convincing 8-1 win at the Hershey Racquet Club Saturday. The Fords came into the match ranked ninth in the Atlantic South region and were looking to solidify their Centennial Conference playoff chances with a victory over the Diplomats.
The doubles matches began with Abbey Russano and Rachael Fitzgerald teaming up for Haverford in the first slot against Cassidy Landau and Mackenzie Sherman of Franklin & Marshall.
Russano and Fitzgerald controlled the match from the start, and their relentless play saw them clinch an 8-2 victory. Ellie Esterowitz and Mimi Lavin played in the second slot for the Fords, and they faced Clara March Okuyama and Jenna Harrison. Esterowitz and Lavin played an excellent match, winning 8-3 to improve to 11-5 this season as a pair.
In the third doubles slot, Summer Williams and Abhishree Menon made quick work of Amelia Squires and Rebecca Bellick, winning the match 8-3. The Fords' strong doubles play gave them a 3-0 lead heading into the singles matches.
In the singles matches, the Fords' top three players all won in straight sets. Ellie Esterowitz won her match against Cassidy Landau with a score of 6-3, 6-2, while Abbey Russano beat Jenna Harrison 7-5, 6-2. Mimi Lavin lost a tight match against Mackenzie Sherman, with the final score being 6-4, 2-6, 1-0 (10-8) as Sherman prevailed in a superbreaker after the two players split the opening sets.
The Fords' next three players, Rachael Fitzgerald, Summer Williams, and Sriya Krishnan, all won their matches in straight sets, with Krishnan looking particularly dominant in her 8-2 victory over Hayley Bidwell played in a pro-set format due to the move to limited courts indoors at the sixth flight.
Overall, it was a strong performance from the Fords, who got the best of the Diplomats in both doubles and singles matches. Haverford's doubles play was particularly impressive on Saturday, with all three pairs winning convincingly to set the tone in Hershey.
The Fords will now look to carry this momentum into their next match, which will be another important conference battle against Washington College on Wednesday, April 19 (4 p.m.) at home. If the Fords can continue to play like they did against Franklin & Marshall, they will be tough to beat for any team in the Centennial Conference.