The start of the women’s tennis season is officially upon us. Last year, the UMass Boston team took down Rhode Island College and won the Little Easy Conference Championship, and this season, the expectations are no different. Do the Beacons have the team to go back-to-back? According to Beacons Athletics, their 2–1 start to the year seems to say that they do. (1)
Their first match of the year was against Wheaton College, a school that, as pointed out by Beacons Athletics, handed them one of their four losses last season. (2) The Lyons pounced first and were victorious in the first two matches. However, the duo of Elena Albano and Ayonna Stuppard got the Beacons their first match win shortly after, winning a close one 8–7, as noted by Beacons Athletics. (3)
The two schools were tied at two matches apiece after freshman Zanaib Patel nagged the first win of her collegiate career. Unfortunately for the Beacons, the Lyons took the next three matches. Lydia Chan continued her dominance securing another singles win, and freshman Sandra Watson got her first win, but the Lyons had already secured the win overall by then, 5–4. (3)
Despite the loss, this was a better showing than their last match against Wheaton at the end of last season, where the Beacons lost 7–2. That speaks volumes given the Beacons were a championship team. The close loss didn’t shake the Beacons, as they faced off against Salem State University in their first conference match and showed no remorse.
The team took care of business against the Vikings, sweeping them and winning 9–0. According to Beacons Athletics, the Vikings did not score more than three points in any of the nine matches. This included four games where the Vikings failed to score a single point. (4) It’s safe to say the match against the Lyons sparked something in the Beacons, as they played like they didn’t want to lose again.
Castleton University was the next victim of the Beacons’ reign of terror. According to Beacons Athletics, the Beacons once again took care of their doubles matches with ease. Albano and Stuppard’s chemistry was simply too much for the Spartans, as they moved to 3–0 as a duo this season. The Beacons ended up winning five of their six singles, totaling an 8–1 victory overall and moving them to 2–1 on the year. (5)
This marked twelve straight conference wins for the Beacons, an absolutely insane feat. (4) The additions of Patel and Watson, both of whom have been elite as freshmen, may be exactly what the Beacons need to win their second LEC title in a row.
According to Beacons Athletics, the two of them have only dropped one match between each other, and Watson hasn’t given up a single point in her singles matches yet. (6) These two young stars are only going to get better, and perhaps the show put on by these Beacons will be a long-term obstacle for other LEC programs.
As of right now, the Beacons are the team to beat in the LEC, and it’s unlikely that will change anytime soon. There are eight total LEC matches throughout the season before the tournament in total and according to Beacons Athletics, the last time the Beacons lost one was all the way back in 2021. (7)
This year’s women’s tennis squad could very well be even better than the last, and with the young talent this team has, this dominance could be an annual occurrence. The team expects to finish this semester with another title to their name, and they’ve shown they are perfectly capable of making that a reality. If you are able to, you should absolutely attend a match, as you could be witnessing a historic run in the making.
Sources:
- https://beaconsathletics.com/sports/womens-tennis/schedule
- https://beaconsathletics.com/sports/womens-tennis/schedule/2022-23
- https://beaconsathletics.com/news/2023/9/21/womens-tennis-suffers-narrow-defeat-in-season-opener.aspx
- https://beaconsathletics.com/sports/womens-tennis/stats/2023-24/salem-state-university/boxscore/11462
- https://beaconsathletics.com/sports/womens-tennis/stats/2023-24/vermont-state-university-castleton/boxscore/11463
- https://beaconsathletics.com/news/2023/9/26/womens-tennis-continues-lec-dominance.aspx
- https://beaconsathletics.com/sports/womens-tennis/schedule/2021-22
