The University of Rhode Island women’s tennis team kept its momentum from last weekend with another pair of wins against Hofstra University and in-state rival Providence College, with home court advantage for the first time this season.
The Rams defeated Hofstra 4-1 on Saturday. The Rams took care of business, winning all three of their doubles matches to take a 1-0 lead. Fourth-year captain Nikki Fernando, alongside first-year Kajsa Helgesen, started it off with a 6-4 victory in their respective matches.
The next two doubles matches were dominated by the Rams, with scores of 6-0. The teams of second-years Grace Darcy and Anastasia Pettersson, and fourth-years Sophie Herrman and Ava Grnja, both picked up sweeps.
In singles action, the Rams picked up three wins, all in straight sets. Fernando continued to play great in singles, winning in straight sets 6-1 and 6-1. Helgesen and first-year Miruna Scarlat impressed once again in their singles matches. Helgesen won in straight sets, 6-1 and 6-3. Scarlat won in straight sets, 6-0 and 6-4.
“We lost a senior and a freshman from last year, so we lost two key pieces in our lineup from last year,” URI Head Coach Jonas Brobeck said. “We needed to bring in two pieces that really kind of helped us out both on and off the court, and I feel like Miruna and Kajsa have done a good job of doing that.”
The Rams were off to Sunday, where they would stay put in Newport at the International Tennis Hall of Fame to face Providence.
“It was a great energy overall being able to play where we felt we were strongest,” Fernando said.
Providence was no problem for the Rams, with a statement victory of 7-0 with pure domination across the board. The Rams swept their doubles and singles play with no matches lost.
In doubles, Fernando and Helgesen started with a 6-3 win. The pairing has now won their fourth straight match after falling short earlier in the season in their first appearance against Boston University on Jan. 24. Darcy and Pettersson won their doubles match 6-1 to sweep the weekend. Herrman and Grnja also won their doubles match, 6-2.
In singles, the Rams had no trouble whatsoever, with not a single player dropping a set. The third-year Stephanie Hylton got her first action of the season on Sunday and picked up a singles win in straight sets, 6-1 and 6-3.
URI has won four in a row and is playing strong tennis overall.
“I feel like the chemistry is great,” Brobeck said. “We talk about that a lot, how we need to act as teammates and support each other and go above and beyond for each other.”
The Rams will face the New Jersey Institute of Technology this upcoming Sunday, where they will look to keep their momentum and win a fifth consecutive match.
