The No. 11 Virginia women's tennis team jumped out to a 2-0 start in the ACC Friday with a solid 6-1 victory against No. 40 Boston College before falling for the first time in conference play against No. 34 Maryland Sunday afternoon.
During Friday's midday match, the Cavaliers (13-3, 2-1 ACC) appeared to have their hands full against an Eagles squad (7-6, 2-1 ACC), which hoped to take an early advantage after doubles play.
Boston College's pairing of sophomores Alex Kelleher and Olga Khymlev climbed to an early two-game lead against Virginia junior Emily Fraser and sophomore Hana Tomljanovic at the No. 1 doubles position. But Fraser and Tomljanovic, who ranked No. 20 nationally entering the conference bout, battled back from the deficit and eventually won the matchup 8-6 after taking three of the last four games.
"This was a team that was definitely looking to get a good win over us, and they were particularly gunning for us," Fraser said. "They came out really strong on all courts, especially ours. I think focusing on a few specifics in the doubles - some targets and covering the line a little bit - really helped us."
Junior Lindsey Hardenbergh and freshman Caryssa Peretz also were forced to climb back from a two-game deficit at No. 3 doubles. The two athletes, who were playing with one another for the first time this season, registered an 8-5 finish to help Virginia garner the doubles point.
"The doubles started off pretty rough," coach Mark Guilbeau said. "Certainly, at No. 1 and No. 3 we had our hands full. I thought [Tomljanovic] was our MVP in doubles today ... And [Peretz] was a new addition to the doubles that I thought really came in and did a fantastic job."
The Cavaliers rebounded from their slow start during the singles portion of the match, successfully downing their opponent in five of the six matchups of the afternoon to extend the team's win streak to three games.
Fraser and Hardenbergh cruised to victories, easily defeating their opponents 6-3, 6-2 and 6-1, 6-2, respectively, in straight sets.
Sophomore Maria Fuccillo and Tomljanovic only required two sets to collect personal victories. Peretz, meanwhile, secured a win in a 10-6 third-set tiebreaker against sophomore Ina Kauppila. Virginia's only loss of the match came at the No. 4 singles position at which sophomore Erin Vierra dropped a 10-2 set in a tiebreak situation.
"We had a really solid and tough week of practice," Hardenbergh said. "I think heading into it, we were able to work out the kinks and just feel really confident in our hard work."
With their first victory at the Snyder Tennis Center under their belts, the Cavaliers confidently traveled to College Park, Md. to take on the Terrapins Sunday afternoon.
Maryland (11-2, 1-2 ACC) stole the doubles point to take a 1-0 lead heading into singles play, during which the Cavaliers rallied to take four of the first six sets. Unfortunately for the Cavaliers, however, the squad failed to hold off the Terrapins during three of the singles matchups, allowing Maryland to seize the 4-3 win.
No. 55 Fraser and No. 96 Tomljanovic were upset at the No. 1 and No. 3 singles positions, respectively, while Fuccillo dropped a 6-4 set during a tiebreak opportunity. Hardenbergh, Vierra and Peretz, meanwhile, edged each of their opponents.
Despite the setback, Guilbeau has urged his squad not to focus on records, but rather concentrate on continuing to believe in its skill sets throughout the remainder of the season.
"They've done enough where the numbers are going to be pretty positive no matter what," Guilbeau said. "Now it's about how well can we play and can we do the things that got us to this place. It doesn't just get there and stop. I want to make sure we go forward."
The Cavaliers will look to move forward this weekend as they return home to face off against No. 6 Miami Saturday and No. 35 Florida State Sunday.
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