Jolene Nacapuy
Assistant Sports Editor
The women’s tennis team defeated No. 24 Brandeis, 6-3, Thursday at the Claremont Club. The Leopards have now beaten three nationally ranked teams in four games to begin the season.
The Brandeis Judges were a challenging team but the Leopards came out on top, swinging strong in both the doubles and singles matches.
“Doubles played really well and I’m proud of that,” head coach Yolanda Duron said. “They play on double strategy and they are mentally tough.”
No.1 doubles pair of junior Laina Matsuda and senior Jeanette Losaria defeated Carley Cooke and Simone Vandroff of Brandeis, 8-3, and the No. 2 pair of seniors Allison Moncrief and Bridget Etchegaray, won 8-6.
No. 3 pair of sophomores Andrea Madrigal and Megan Soucy fell short, losing their doubles match, 8-3.
Soucy had strong serves and with help from Madrigal, they kept the rally going as long as they could in the losing effort.
“I felt that my doubles match wasn’t great that I could’ve done better,” Soucy said. “I just need to be aggressive at the net and finish points.”
Brandeis took two wins in the single matches, defeating Losaria and Moncrief. But the Leopards took four.
In the No. 1 singles match, Madrigal defeated Cooke 6-2, 6-2. Etchegaray beat Emily Eska, 6-4, 6-1, and Matsuda beat Vandroff, 6-2, 6-2.
“Singles did well today and fought hard in each set,” Duron said. “They are working on things and getting better each time. Brandeis was a tough competitor but we just pushed harder than they did.”
Sophomore Shenelle Trujillo was the last of the singles players to finish. She fought long and hard in the second set, beating Alicia Katz, 6-3, 7-5.
“It was a challenge because of how close the set was,” Trujillo said. “I tried to hold on as long as I could until I got that win over her.”
La Verne will play at 2 p.m. Friday at the Claremont Club, where it will begin conference play, hosting Cal Lutheran.
“I expect a lot of energy against Cal Lutheran,” Duron said. “It’s going to be a heated battle since we have history with them.”
Jolene Nacapuy can be reached at jolene.nacapuy@laverne.edu.
