Utica, NY – The Utica College women's tennis team is at home again for two matches this weekend. First UC will play SUNY Delhi for the second meeting of the season, starting at 4 p.m. on Friday. Next the Pioneers will host Stevens for an E8 contest, beginning at 12 p.m. on Sunday.
Last Time Out: The Pioneers lost to St. John Fisher in their last appearance, 8-1. The loss pushes the team's record down to 2-6 overall and 1-5 in E8 play.
Lulu Zhang (Wenzhou, China/Newcomers) earned the team's only match point of the day, winning the third singles flight 6-1, 6-0.
Season Winding Down: The Pioneers are in the final stretch of the season, with just three matches left on the schedule. After meeting with Delhi on Friday, the team faces E8 foe Stevens on Sunday. Then the season finale will be played on the road, for a conference battle with Sage. With the Stevens match being the final home contest of the year, it will be the last home appearance for seniors and graduate students. On Sunday, the trio of
Shannon Fillmore (Somerset, NJ/Franklin),
Monica Johnson (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool), and
Lulu Zhang (Wenzhou, China/Newcomers) will play in the last home matches of their careers.
SUNY Delhi Matchup: The Broncos are sitting at a record of 1-6 overall so far this season. The team's last contest was against Utica College, where the Pioneers came away with the 7-2 victory. After losing the first doubles flight, the duos of
Lulu Zhang (Wenzhou, China/Newcomers)/
Julianne Pieros (Alpha, NJ/Phillipsburg) and
Bianca Bockhaus (Shenorock, NY/Somers)/
Christa Pham (Utica, NY/T.R. Proctor) came back to win the next two doubles matchups. In singles play, UC only surrendered one match, winning five of the possible six points. Zhang, Bockhaus, Pham,
Sara Gribanoff (West Winfield, NY/Mount Markham), and
Shannon Fillmore (Somerset, NJ/Franklin) all won their flights in singles competition against Delhi the first time around.
Stevens Matchup: The Ducks are sitting at a record of 5-1 overall and 4-1 in Empire 8 play. The team is currently on a five match winning streak, heading into the matchup with UC. Stevens defeated Muhlenberg College last time out, by a score of 8-1. The Ducks have had three shutout performances this season over conference opponents, coming against Houghton, Sage and Alfred. Last year UC lost to Stevens on the road, 9-0. The Pioneers will be looking for their first victory over Stevens in more than ten years.
Looking Ahead: UC will be on the road for its last contest of the 2017 season on October 3rd. The team will face off against Empire 8 foe Sage, starting at 3:30 p.m.
