The St. Olaf women’s tennis team opened the spring season with an impressive show of force on Feb. 14, defeating a stout squad from Luther College in all but two matches.
Alisa Hall ’16 led the Oles in the No. 1 singles match, letting up only one game and winning 6-1, 6-0. Kristi Kroker ’15 won the next match in a similar fashion, followed by Margaret Zimmerman ’18 winning over her Luther competitor in a tiebreaker game. The Norse gained some ground on the Oles as Maya MacGibbon ’16 ultimately came up short in a closely contested match that sparked some hope in the opposing side’s ranks.
Luther’s attempts to level the meet were in vain, with the Oles winning the remaining two singles matches. Erin Hynes ’15 defeated her opponent 6-4, 7-5, and Bailey Kent ’16 followed up with another tiebreaker victory, eliminating any chance that the Oles would fall. St. Olaf was defeated in the first doubles match, as Hall and Zimmerman fell to the duo across the court. Kroker and MacGibbon took the next doubles match in a closely contested battle, winning 9-8.
The final match of the day saw Erin McDonald ’18 and Kent winning with a strong show of force, 8-3.
The Oles’ victory is a good sign as to what fans expect to see in the future, and hopefully a representation of the play the Oles need in order to have a strong season. St. Olaf’s play was impressive, and with plenty of veteran leadership along with plenty of skill amongst the younger players, victories should come easily to the team.
With that being said, tennis is unpredictable, full of surprises, and anything is possible as spring approaches. There is plenty of room for improvement, and it will be up to the players to decide just how good they can be this year. One thing is certain, though, and that is that we showed our fellow Nords down south just who owns the court, and hopefully this victory has shown other teams just what the Oles are made of.
