Up against formidable conference opponents, the Stony Brook women’s tennis team went winless in Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) play this past week.
The Seawolves (2-9, 1-2 CAA) traveled to Maryland to take on the Towson Tigers (1-4, 1-2 CAA) on Thursday, losing narrowly 4-3. The next day, Stony Brook faced the Delaware Blue Hens (12-5, 3-0 CAA) as the Blue Hens decimated the Seawolves 7-0 on Friday.
Thursday against Towson saw the debut of two new double pairings this season. The first of which was Mia Palladino and Elena Lobo-Corral in first doubles. In their first match together, the Seawolves duo fell 6-2 against Towson’s Ashira Murray and Mya Spencer.
In second doubles, Dasha Perfiliev and Cornelia Bruu-Syversen put up a valiant effort but ultimately failed to capture the win for Stony Brook. They were bested by Chandre Boshoff and Lea Kosanovic with a final score of 6-4, as the Tigers notched another doubles point.
The third and final double match of the day headlined the new partnership of Sara Medved and Carmen Villalba Rubio. In their debut as a double pairing, the pair won the only double match of the day for Stony Brook in a 6-2 victory against Olivia Rothfeld and Erin Gray. Villabla Rubio made her season debut after missing last year with a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in her right knee.
Head coach Thiago Dualiby remains patient in his team’s development in doubles play, as he sees growth in the aspect of the game despite the continuous losing effort.
“We are working on it, there is progress but it is not something developed in a few weeks or months to be excellent,” Dualiby said in a postgame interview with The Statesman.
Stony Brook fared better in singles, as Palladino pulled out another win in first singles, beating Spencer in three sets. Spencer got out in front early in the match, beating Palladino 6-3 in the first set. However, Palladino swept Spencer in the second set 6-0 before winning the tiebreaker set with a final score of 6-3.
In second singles, Lobo-Corral had a strong showing, sweeping Boshoff in two sets with a final score of 6-4 and 6-1 respectively. Perfiliev was not as fortunate, getting swept 6-2 in consecutive sets against Murray in third singles.
The fourth singles match headlined Bruu-Syversen who had to withdraw due to injury. Before she retired, she was down 4-1 to Rothfeld. Dualiby did not disclose what injury Bruu-Syversen suffered but was not concerned about her availability going forward.
In fifth singles, Medved lost her first set 6-4 against Kosanovic but found her footing in the second set with a 6-1 victory. In the third and deciding set, Medved defeated Kosanovic 7-5.
The day rounded out with the sixth and final single match, as Villabla Rubio fell short in her single debut to Sania Suchinsky 6-4 in two sets.
On Friday, Stony Brook struggled across the board against the Blue Hens, starting in doubles play. Palladino and Lobo-Corral lost 7-5 against Slade Coetzee and Alina Vasilenko in the first doubles match.
In second doubles, Perfiliev and Bruu-Syversen suffered the same fate, losing 7-5 to Julieta Honrubia and Maryia Hrynashka.
Medved and Villabla Rubio lost the third doubles match of the day 6-1 against Paulina Jurkowska and Samantha Svendsen as Delaware took the doubles point.
The Blue Hens continued their momentum in singles, winning all six singles matches, and sweeping the day in singles and doubles competition.
Dualiby commended Delaware as a team, citing Stony Brook’s lack of success in putting the match away when they had the chance.
“Delaware has a strong team this year and we needed to play solid throughout and capitalize on the chances we had,” Dualiby said.
Palladino, who has been a mainstay at first singles, lost 6-3 in the first set and 7-5 in the second against Coetzee. Palladino, a true freshman, is now 7-3 in singles for the year.
Lobo-Corral, in second singles, lost the first set 6-2 against Vasilenko but Lobo-Corral responded, flipping the score 6-2 her way to win the second set. In a competitive tiebreaker set, Vasilenko edged out Lobo-Corral with a 10-8 victory.
In third singles, Perfiliev was soundly defeated by Hrynashka, losing 6-3 in the first set and 6-1 in the second set. Bruu-Syversen did not find any momentum of her own in fourth singles, losing 6-1 in the first set and 6-3 in the second.
The fifth singles match had a competitive start, as Medved lost 7-5 in the first set, before falling 6-0 in the second set against Jurkowska.
In sixth singles, Villabla Rubio lost her first set 6-3 against Navya Vadlamudi and retired from her second set to give Vadlamudi the win and Delaware the 6-0 single match sweep.
Dualiby is taking the slow approach with Villabla Rubio given her injury as he did not see the movement out of her to warrant letting the match continue.
“It’s tough to stay this long away from competition, all in all, doubles went well,” Dualiby said. “Singles require a lot more movement and she needs to keep improving her singles movement.”
Stony Brook will take on the Long Island University (LIU) Sharks in Brooklyn on Sunday, March 24th. The Sharks are 4-4 for the year and are coming off a 2-5 loss against the Fordham Rams. They will play the Sacred Heart Pioneers on Saturday before facing the Seawolves. Opening serve will begin at 3 p.m.
