SPARKILL, NY – On an unusually warm October day, the St. Thomas Aquinas College women's tennis team played yet another tough, regional match against Concordia College.  The non-conference slate looked to be the makings of a rout for the Clippers, as they swept all three doubles matches, but the stubborn Lady Spartans proved yet again to be one of the toughest outs in the East region, eventually falling 7-2.  

After dropping their first singles contest, the Lady Spartans won two of the final five, with one of the losses going to a third set.  Senior captain Sara O'Brien '18 (Orangeburg, NY) got STAC on the board, winning her match at fifth singles when her opponent retired after dropping the first set 6-4.

Nyenyeri Kanefu '18 (Rutherford, NJ) won her first set at second singles 6-3, before dropping the second set 6-2.  In the third set super tiebreaker, Kanefu faced an 8-2 deficit before clawing her way back into the breaker, winning six of the final eight points to lose by the narrowest of margins, 10-8.  

Fresh off her second consecutive East Coast Conference Rookie of the Week selection, Lovisa Engstrand '21 (Stockholm, Sweden) won her match at third singles in exciting fashion.  With the first set tied at 6-6, Engstrand launched a barrage of forehands and backhands to win the tiebreak 7-4.  In the second set, Engstrand won three straight games to take a 4-1 lead, only to see her opponent battle back 5-4 and 6-5, before breaking her opponent's serve to win 7-5.  The win was her sixth consecutive singles victory in dual match play.

The Lady Spartans are next in action this Friday and Saturday, as they host ECC rivals Roberts Wesleyan and Daemen.  First serve for Friday is set for 2:00 PM, weather permitting.            

Concordia 7, St. Thomas Aquinas 2

Doubles

1.     Victorsson/Kalm (CON) def. Engstrand/O'Brien (STAC), 8-5

2.     Martin/Karlsson Hantis (CON) def. Rohr/Kanefu (STAC), 8-0

3.     Mrewa/Putschbach (CON) def. Lopez/Kopf (STAC), 8-1

Singles

1.     Siri Victorsson (CON) def. Cassandra Rohr (STAC), 6-0, 6-0

2.     Josefina Torres Martin (CON) def. Nyenyeri Kanefu (STAC), 3-6, 6-2, 1-0 (10-8)

3.     Lovisa Engstrand (STAC) def. Kistel Kalm (CON), 7-6 (7-4), 7-5

4.     Angelica Karlsson Hantis (CON) def. Katarina Lopez (STAC), 6-4, 6-0

5.     Sara O'Brien (STAC) def. Tadi Mrewa (CON), 6-4, ret.

6.     Franziska Putschbach (CON) def. Carolyn Kopf (STAC), 8-2 

Order of Finish:           Doubles:  2, 3, 1          Singles:  1, 4*, 5, 2, 3, 6