The SUNY Plattsburgh tennis team dropped to 5-5 overall and 1-3 in the SUNYAC after falling to 7-2 SUNY Oneonta last Saturday.
The Cardinals were able to win two out of 9 games. At No. 3 doubles and No. 5 singles. Sophomore Megan Blake and junior Erin Wiggins claimed their doubles win with a score of 8-3. Sophomore Sarah Hoeffner won back-to-back sets, winning the first 7-5 and then the second 6-1. Hoeffner has only lost 2 singles matches this season, with a record of 7-2.
“It was a tough battle for the first set, definitely, but in the second set, I feel like my opponent kind of got in her own head and that’s [very important] in tennis,” Hoeffner said, “and it’s something we’ve all been working on, to stay mentally tough throughout the whole match and keep our confidence levels up.”
For the remaining doubles matches, junior Rukshana Abdeen and Hoeffner fell 8-4 at the top spot, and at the No. 2, senior Sierra Barrett and freshman Cydney Bond were topped 8-4.
Abdeen battled at the top spot for singles and nearly got the win but came up just short, winning the first set 7-6, following a 7-4 tiebreak. She lost the second set 6-2, and the third set 10-7.
The rest of the singles matches were decided in two sets. Freshman Alyana Leandry lost at the No. 2 spot with a score of 6-0 in the first set and 6-1 in the second. Barrett fell in the first set 6-2 and 6-1 in the second at No. 3. At No. 4, Bond fell 6-3 in the first set and was swept 6-0 in the second. And at No. 6, junior Kelly Gloo fell 6-1 in both the first and second sets.
Plattsburgh State now slips to an even record and falls to second to last place in the SUNYAC standings and are now on the verge of being eliminated. The Cards wrap up their season this weekend, first facing off against the College at Brockport (5-5 overall, 1-3 SUNYAC) Friday at noon.
“I think we can pull off a win; I definitely think so. We all just have to bring our A-game, and I think it should be a good match though. I don’t think any team is that much better or much worse, and it’ll be a competitive match,” Hoeffner said.
Plattsburgh State will face undefeated SUNY Geneseo (6-0 overall, 4-0 SUNYAC) Saturday at noon. Finally, the Cards go up against Fredonia College (10-1 overall, 3-1 SUNYAC, their only loss to Geneseo) Sunday at 9 a.m. Each of the three games will take place at the Binghamton Tennis Center.
