Syracuse tennis extends losing streak to three games

Syracuse tennis extends losing streak to three games

Duke tennis dominated the Orange 6-1.
Published: March 24, 2023
Syracuse women's tennis fell to No. 10 Duke 6-1 for the Orange's third consecutive loss on March 24.
Syracuse women's tennis fell to No. 10 Duke 6-1 for the Orange's third consecutive loss on March 24.

Syracuse tennis (11-4, 4-4) circled back to Drumlins Country Club to take on No. 10 Duke (16-2, 5-1) after losing two road games to Clemson and Georgia Tech. The Blue Devils crushed the Orange 6-1, giving the Orange their longest losing streak of the season. 

Syracuse head coach Younes Limam decided to stick with the recent doubles lineup. The first pair was Zeynep Erman and Ines Fonte, who matched up with Duke’s 32nd-ranked duo, Chloe Beck and Cameron Morra. Vicktorya Kanapataskaya and Shiori Ito played against Duke’s Karolina Berankova and Ellie Coleman as the second doubles. The third doubles match featyred Miyuka Kimoto and Polina Kozyreva versus Georgia Drummy and Iuliia Bryzgalova.

Erman and Fonte dropped the set 6-2 due to the numerous errors. Morra demonstrated her athleticism, returning fast and low shots to force a series of errors for Syracuse. Erman had a strong serve and strike as usual. Fonte committed a series of errors while guarding in front of the net, struggling to get the ball over it.

Kimoto and Kozyreva lost 6-1 to Drummy and Bryzgalova, while Kanapataskaya and Ito managed the only competitive doubles match. Kanapataskaya scored by striking and smashing the ball, while Ito pilfered points with her agile play near the net. They won the set 6-2, though Duke had already secured the first point from the doubles section.

In singles, Erman was the first to combat No. 2 Beck. She tried to set the tone early, challenging Beck and forcing movement from her. However, Erman lost the momentum of the first set after committing a series of errors. She continued to commit mistakes, while Beck kept slicing in response, losing in two sets, 6-2 and 6-0.

Against Duke’s most athletic player, Kanapataskaya didn’t tried to take control of Morra’s pace. She used lob shots and short slices to exhaust Morra but couldn’t keep her advantage to the end. She eventually surrendered, 6-4 and 7-5.

Kimoto was dominated by Duke’s No. 31 Emma Jackson, 6-3 and 6-1. Jackson moved swiftly across the court to make returns, as Kimoto played passively in each set.

Fonte’s game against Brianna Shvets was forfeited when Fonte fell behind, 3-0.

Ito was unable to resist the offensive play by Coleman in the first set. She fought back, winning 6-4 in the second set and pushing the game to the tiebreaker, where she lost 10-5.

Kozyreva helped the Orange earn the only point of the day. She won the first set 7-5, but the game was also forced to the tiebreaker after Bryzgalova seized the second. Kozyreva didn’t give her a chance, winning 10-2.

“We just have to change the mindset and go back to things that made us successful in the past,” Limam said.

The Orange will host their final home game against No. 1 North Carolina Sunday at 10:30 a.m.