Santa Cruz,CA-It took a few weeks to get the match reorganized after a postponement but Menlo Women's Tennis finally got a chance to take on the Banana Slugs of UC Santa Cruz. In what was a back and forth affair the Oaks were able to edge out their opponents and bring home a 4-3 victory!

Doubles Play Recap

The Oaks got the match started winning two of the three opening doubles play rounds. Valentina Urelli Rinaldi and her partner Andrea Vlasceanu won relatively easily thanks to an 8-4 victory. Franziska Niederle and Angelika Sidorov were even more dialed in winning their head to head matchup 8-2. Doubles play has long been a strong point for the Oaks who can roll out multiple combinations of their top players.

Back & Forth Singles Battles

During singles play the match would get much closer with both teams picking up multiple wins. Niederle would lead the Oaks in single plays as she emerged victorious thanks to winning 6-1 and 6-2 in a quick two sets. Vlasceanu also won her singles play to cap off a strong day of play from the Spain native. Vlasceanu would win with a decisive final score of 6-4 across both sets. Lastly, Urelli Rinaldi found herself in a tightly contested battle that would end up requiring three sets to determine a winner. She would fall behind in the first set 4-6 but managed to flip the script to win the second set 6-4. The final and third set would come down to an overtime point. This match would not just decide the winner between two players but the winning team for the day. Thankfully, Urelli Rinaldi was up to the task, winning the final set 7-6.

Up Next…

The Oaks will now prepare for a long homestand that will get kickstarted with their old GSAC rival Westmont coming to town. The Oaks are starting to really gain momentum and will continue to do so as the main portion of their conference now gets underway!