"We couldn't have asked for a better result this weekend," said co-captain Roopali Agarwal '03. "This was a direct result of our hard work over the first two weeks of the season."
In their opening weekend of matches, the Jeffs played nearly flawless tennis. Opening the season aginst Trinity College, the Jeffs pounded their way to a dominating 9-0 win. The Jeffs did not lose one set in any of the nine matches and were only pushed to the limit in one match.
Leading the way for the Jeffs' was a trio of underclassmen Kristen Raverta '06, Rachel Holt '05 and Tristan Hedrick '05. Raverta slid right into the top slot in the Jeffs' singles ladder when she arrived on campus, and her dominating 6-4, 6-1 win over Diana Goldman of Trinity in the number one singles slot cemented her spot.
Holt is building upon a stellar rookie season, where she was named a Division III All-American, to go along with a number of rookie-of-the-year awards. On Saturday, Holt rolled to a 6-2, 6-2 win. Hedrick provided the most dominating win of the day, taking down Courtney Sargeant 6-0, 6-1.
In the fourth singles slot Wallis Molchen '04 took a 6-4, 6-3 win, while co-captains Agarwal and Paige Lawrence '03 took wins in the fifth and sixth singles slots, respectively.
Another encouraging sign for the Jeffs was the doubles play. None of the three teams, led by the tandem of Holt and Hedrick at the first doubles slot, lost more than four games in the match.
The next day against Skidmore College, the Jeffs were just as good, again not dropping a single set on their way to a 9-0 victory.
Although the Jeffs switched their singles ladder slightly, the results were the same. Raverta dominated on her way to a 6-0, 6-1 win, while Hedrick one-upped her teammate at the second singles slot, not losing a game on her way to a 6-0, 6-0 win.
"Kristen had a great weekend, and she is proving to be a great competitor," said Agarwal.
Molchen, Agarwal and Lawrence all took home victories in the third through fifth slots, while Erin Murphy '05 took a win in the sixth singles slot in her first match action as a Jeff.
The doubles teams remained the same on Saturday against Trinity, and the results were even better, as no tandem lost more than two games in the match.
Yesterday, the Jeffs faced their toughest competition so far, as they took on Division I opponent and crosstown rival UMass. The Jeffs have traditionally fared well against the Minutewomen, and yesterday they mounted a stiff challenge before eventually falling 5-4. "I think we were a little tired after playing two matches this weekend," said Holt. "But we did play well, and our prospects look good for the rest of the season."
As the Jeffs go deeper into their season, they will face a number of more difficult opponents starting with Little III rival Wesleyan University this weekend.