Sept. 21, 2008
The men's and women's tennis teams traveled to Temple, Texas to open the 2008-2009 season, coming home with a 5-4 win for the women and a 1-8 loss for the men.
Two women's doubles teams returned with strong wins, with Jessica Gaines / Mary Pennington and Lali Satyavada / Charlotte Huskey both scoring 8-1 against their opponents. Huskey and Satyavada would both follow up with two-set victories (6-0, 6-1 and 6-0, 6-0 respectively), while freshman Jessica Gaines needed three to take down Temple's Amanda Armenta (4-6, 7-6, 6-4). "Jessica will play an important role within our women's team," predicted head coach Lester Sombito. "She has shown from her performances that she can be counted on in both the singles and doubles line-up."
On the men's side, an Alexander Reinsch / Alex Lam double made short work of their Temple opponents with an 8-4 win. Charles Prince / Griffin Ferry fell 5-8, and the matches came up short for the team in singles with four losses. Reduced numbers on the men's squad forced the Pirates to forfeit three additional matches.
Promising contributions came in from first-year members of both teams. "[They] showed an understanding of our doubles system of play, getting the movements and court positioning needed to give us opportunities," said Sombito. "They want to work hard to win. I see it from them in practice and in the extra time they spend on the court."
With the last co-ed event of 2008 behind them, the Pirate men now looks forward to the ITA Regional Men's Tournament this weekend in San Antonio September 26-28. The women will compete at the ITA Regional Women's Tournament the following weekend, October 3-5, in Tyler.