Patriot women's tennis team could not remain undefeated on the new Mason tennis courts as they fell to a very strong Howard team today 2-4.
Mason fell behind by losing the doubles point in closely contested matches as they lost at #2 (Yang/Lacy-Thompson) and #3 doubles (Boers/Saygi) in tie-breakers.
"Howard is known for having very strong doubles", commented Coach Stephen Curtis,"and we pushed them to the limit today."
Morgan Yang pulled Mason even when her opponent had to retire with an injury after Morgan had gone up 3-0 in the first set. Howard jumped ahead by two when they won at the #6 and #1 positions.
Mason last players on, Ashley Delaney, Olivia Lacy-Thompson and Marijke Boers, all needed to win to secure the victory. All three fought hard but Howard won the match when Stacy Roheman defeated Delaney in two very tough sets. Lacy-Thompson defeated her Bison opponent 6-1 in the third set. The marathon match of the day belonged to Boers and her opponent, Maame Osei. They battled for over two hours and with Boers up 7-6 (8), 5-5 the match had to be called for darkness.
"I was pleased with our play today", continued Curtis. "Howard is very strong and we had our chances today. I was proud of the fight we showed, especially Olivia, Marijke and Ashley. We still need to work on our focus and concentration throughout matches".
The men host Fordham on Friday at 4:00pm and then Patriots host the Blue Hens of Delaware men's and women's team on Saturday. The women begin at 12:00 and the men about 1:30.
Wednesday April 2 at George Mason
Mason 2, Howard 4
Doubles
1. Stokes/Roheman (H) def. Delaney/Pilkington (Mason) 8-4
2. Osei/Josiah (H) def. Yang/Lacy-Thompson (Mason) 8-7 (5)
3. Mughnee/Bell (H) def. Saygi/Boers (Mason) 8-7 (6)
Singles
1. Katelyn Stokes (H) def. Brittany Pilkington (Mason) 6-2, 6-2
2. Morgan Yang (Mason) def. Umarah Mughnee (H) 3-0, retired injury
3. Stacey Roheman (H) def. Ashley Delaney (Mason) 7-6 (5), 6-3
4. Marijke Boers (Mason) lead Maame Osei (H) 7-6 (6), 5-5 called for darkness
5. Olivia Lacy-Thompson (Mason) def. Jessica Josiah (H) 6-3, 1-6, 6-1
6. Audra Bell (H) def. Mina Saygi (Mason) 6-1, 6-4
Order of finish:
Doubles: 1, 3, 2,
Singles: 2, 6, 1, 3, 5, 4
