KEARNEY, Neb. – The back half of the lineup made the difference on Saturday (Feb. 18) as the Concordia University Women’s Tennis team took on a junior college opponent for the second-straight outing. The Bulldogs picked up the doubles point and then won three singles matches while eking out a 4-3 triumph over Pratt Community College of Pratt, Kan. The match was contested at Grundy Tennis Center in Kearney, Neb.
Head Coach Cam Long’s squad bumped its record to 2-3 overall. Earlier in the week, Concordia dropped a match against a strong Barton Community College opponent.
“It was good to get in the win column,” Long said. “We got solid performances today from everyone, even in the matches we did not win. Ella (Dean) was extremely impressive making her season debut. I'm exciting to keep the momentum going next weekend.”
The Bulldogs got on the board in doubles with the help of Dean and Gabrielle Heiser at the No. 2 spot. They earned a 6-4 win. That decision combined with a forfeit at No. 3 gave the Bulldogs the team doubles point. Pratt managed to win at the No. 1 position, 6-3, over Tara Ferrel and Alana Lopez Pagan.
In singles, Dean came through again in earning a dominant 6-0, 6-0, win over Nathalia Rodrigues at No. 4. Brooke Hosick also emerged as a 6-1, 6-4, victor at No. 5 and Kylie Freudenburg was a winner by forfeit at No. 6. That was enough to push Concordia into the winner’s circle. At the No. 1 position, the Bulldogs’ Mariana Molano was narrowly beaten in a tiebreaker. The Nos. 2 and 3 spots were held down, respectively, by Tessa Blough and Lopez Pagan.
Concordia will have a bit of a break in the schedule before heading to Fulton, Mo., next Saturday (Feb. 25) for matches against Tabor College (Kan.) and William Woods University (Mo.). Those two contests will wrap up the slate for February.