Williams Overpowers Vassar

 WILLIAMSTOWN, MA - In their first home match of the season, the Williams women handily defeated Vassar. After sweeping doubles, the Ephs only lost one singles point to end with an 8-1 victory.

After Cary Gibson and Grace Baljon blanked their Vassar opponents on doubles court one, duos Nikki Reich and Lucy Marchese and Ashley Parsons and Jane Kelley, on courts two and three respectively, struggled. Both Eph pairs fought through to earn victories, however, pushing Williams into singles play with momentum.

Sophomore Baljon, playing on court two, handled Vassar's Romita easily, earning a fourth point for Williams after taking her match in straight sets. Earning the fifth point and sealing the win for Williams was fellow sophomore Parsons, with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Kliman.

First-year Reich finished next, also in straight sets. Reich topped Vassar's Steele 6-2, 6-0. Playing on court one for Williams was ITA singles champ Gibson, who earned a 6-1, 6-4 victory for the Ephs. Moments after Gibson's win, Marchese stole another point for Williams, ending with a 6-1, 6-1 win over Vassar's Barrett.

Vassar's lone point came from senior Courtney Burks, who topped Eph Kathryn Friedman on court six.

With just one senior in the lineup, the Eph lineup was shuffled. Head coach Alison Swain commented, "We are lucky to have such a deep and talented pool of players this year.  It gives us a lot of options and the line up will continue to be a work in progress all the way through this fall."

With the shake-up, first-years Riech, Marchese, and Friedman have been given a chance to contribute in the Ephs' first few matches. "I am very impressed with the first years this fall and feel like they are making improvements every match to compete better and better at the college level," said Swain. "They have shown how well they play the big points because each of them have such strong competitive drive.  This kind of drive is exactly what we will need against Amherst this Saturday and in our bigger competitions this spring."

Next weekend the Ephs face a familiar Little Three foe, hosting Amherst on Saturday. The Ephs will also be home on Sunday, facing Wellesley.

"We will primarily focus on mentally preparing for the match, getting psyched, and being ready for what I anticipate being a fantastic battle on Saturday," said Swain. "Amherst always has a very strong team, but I think the girls have gained a lot of confidence since last spring and their finish at NCAAs.  While I know tennis doesn't always draw the big crowds, I can assure everyone that this is going to be a thrilling match to watch."

DOUBLES
1. Gibson/Baljon (W) d. Romita/Kliman 8-0
2. Reich/Marchese (W) d. Pontee/Steele 8-6
3. Parsons/Kelley (W) d. Barnett/Burks 8-6
4. Loomis/Friedman (W) d. Anderson/Dunn-Rankin 8-4

SINGLES
1. Gibson (W) d. Pontee 6-1, 6-4
2. Baljon (W) d. Romita 6-1, 6-2
3. Marchese (W) d. Barrett 6-1, 6-1
4. Parsons (W) d. Kliman 6-1, 6-2
5. Reich (W) d.  Steele 6-2, 6-0
6. Burks (V) d. Friedman 6-4, 6-7 (7-5), 10-5
7. Loomis (W) d. Anderson 6-1, 6-0
8. Kelley (W) d. Dunn-Rankin 6-2, 6-2