ATLANTA – The Case Western Reserve University women's tennis team concluded its stellar spring break trip with a pair of 9-0 victories on Monday at the Blackburn Tennis Center. The Spartans defeated Principia College (Ill.) in the morning and returned in the afternoon to blank host Oglethorpe University (Ga.).
With the victories, the Spartans, ranked No. 14 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Central regional rankings, improve to 13-2 overall in dual matches.
Against Principia (2-3), Case jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead during doubles play. The No. 1 tandem of junior Erika Lim (Fullerton, Calif./Fullerton Union) and freshman sister Alexandra Lim won 8-0; the No. 2 team of sophomore Bianca Patel (Cincinnati, Ohio/Sycamore) and junior Samantha Lewis (Nashville, Tenn./Harpeth Hall) won 8-1; and the No. 3 duo of junior Emily Pham (Mason, Ohio/William Mason) and freshman Marianne Bonanno (Clayton, Ohio/Northmont) were victorious by an 8-1 count.
In singles play, the Spartans picked up six straight-set wins surrendering a total of eight games with No. 2 regionally-ranked Erika Lim at No. 1 (6-0, 6-3), Bonnano at No. 2 (6-0, 6-1), Pham at No. 3 (6-1, 6-0), Alexandra Lim at No. 4 (6-1, 6-0), junior Kathleen Evers (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame) at No. 5 (6-0, 6-1) and Patel at No. 6 (6-1, 6-0).
Versus Oglethorpe (3-7), the Spartans once again didn't drop a set. Erica Lim was taken to first-set tiebreaker at No. 1 singles before eventually winning 7-6 (3), 6-2, while Bonanno, Pham, Patel and Lewis defeated their respective opponents at No. 2 through No. 5 singles by identical 6-0, 6-0 tallies. Rounding out the straight-set singles victories for the Spartans was freshman Morgan Hertik (Nashville, Tenn./Ensworth) with a 6-2, 6-0 win at No. 6.
In doubles, the tandems of the Lim sisters at No. 1 (8-2), Lewis and Evers at No. 2 (8-1) and Bonanno and Pham at No. 3 (8-0) completed the day's sweep.
Case, winners of its last seven dual matches, is back in action up north on Saturday, March 24 at Grove City College (Pa.) at 10:30 a.m.
