Women's Tennis | 3/25/2017 10:12:00 PM
DALLAS – For a second straight day, the St. Edward's women's tennis team produced a 5-4 final. This time, it was the Hilltoppers' turn on the positive side Saturday with a victory over Dallas Baptist to open Heartland Conference play.
St. Edward's (8-8, 1-0 Heartland) snapped Dallas Baptist's (13-3, 2-1 Heartland) eight-match winning streak and knocked the Patriots out of first place in the conference.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- St. Edward's took a 2-1 lead after doubles play.
- After Dallas Baptist won at No. 1 doubles, LAURA GALVAN and VALENTINA MARTINEZ teamed up to win at the No. 2 position for St. Edward's.
- ANJALI SAMPATH and ELISA GUILLEN combined at No. 3 doubles to gain a tiebreaker win and give the Hilltoppers an early lead.
- Martinez, BETH HAYWARD, and MARISSA WILLIAMS each won their singles match in straight sets to claim victory for St. Edward's.
HILLTOPPER NOTES
- BETH HAYWARD won her seventh straight singles match to better her spring record to 9-3.
- Both Martinez and Williams improved their team-leading singles wins total to 10.
- St. Edward's takes sole possession of first place in the Heartland Conference.
- St. Edward's increased its lead in the all-time series with Dallas Baptist to 17-2.
- The Hilltoppers won their eighth straight match against the Patriots.
QUOTE BOARD: HEAD COACH KENDALL BROOKS
"I'm really proud of the way we came out today. We were playing inspired tennis. After losing three close matches in a row, we were determined to get a good start, and we did. We won the first set in four of the six singles matches and never looked back. It was truly a team effort as everyone contributed in their own way. This is a good start to conference play for us. And while this is huge, our season just gets tougher from here, so back to work."
UP NEXT
St. Edward's is back in action Friday at 3:30 p.m. in Wichita Falls, Texas, against No. 15 Midwestern State. There will be no live coverage of the match.
MATCH INFORMATION
Score: #42 St. Edward's 5, #43 Dallas Baptist 4
Records: St. Edward's (8-8, 1-0 Heartland), Dallas Baptist (13-3, 2-1 Heartland)
Clincher: Hayward – SEU (6-3, 7-5)
For the latest information on the St. Edward's University Women's Tennis team, follow us on Facebook and Twitter at @SEUWTennis, or visit us at www.GoHilltoppers.com.
