Miscommunication and a lack of teamwork, focus and energy spelled a loss for the Massachusetts tennis team over the weekend as it dropped its contest, 6-1, to Yale on Saturday.
UMass coach Judy Dixon expressed her frustration, stating that, “individuals played well in moments, but this was a total team defeat and we need to work harder.”
The Minutewomen (3-2) dropped three doubles matches, including losses by Candynce Boney and Julia Comas (4-8), Yuliana Motyl and Chantal Swiszcz (4-8) and Kaitlyn Carpenter and Jocelyn Providence (2-8).
“They didn’t communicate out there and it showed in their performance,” Dixon said.
UMass dropped five-of-six singles matches, but not without Dixon acknowledging the efforts of both Boney and freshman Jessica Podlofsky.
“[Jessica], I felt did really well in defeat,” Dixon said. “After losing the first set, she made it really difficult for her opponent in the second set, making use of the backhand and didn’t give up easy points.”
Podlofsky lost to the Bulldogs’ Annie Sullivan, 6-1, 7-5 in straight sets but, “Kept her cool out there, even being down on the scoreboard,” Dixon said.
On a positive note, Boney, in picking up the lone win for UMass, continued to climb the record books. In defeating Yale’s Blair Seideman, 6-4, 0-6, 10-8, the senior continued working up the ladder, winning her 51st match which ties her currently for fifth all-time in school history.
“I’m so proud to see how far Boney has come over the last four years,” Dixon said. “She showed it in her win, against a very tough opponent from a very tough team. She shows passion every time out and I look for her to carry us as we continue to gel and find our stride as the season gets into high gear.”
The victory marks the second singles match win for Boney this young spring season, with three wins overall in both doubles and singles play.
In a completely opposite performance prior to facing Yale, UMass came out victorious against the New Jersey Institute of Technology, 6-1, to open up play at home this spring.
“We played well in both doubles and singles, but I wanted to see a little more out of them,” Dixon said. “We got away with some stuff, including missed shots by [NJIT] and you’ll take that as a coach sometimes, but we need to do better if we’re going to compete for a higher prize.”
The Maroon and White picked up two wins in singles play, coming off the tandem rackets of Boney and Comas (9-8(5)) and Motyl and Swiszcz (9-7). The lone loss in doubles for UMass was by Carpenter and Tanisha Hodgson (8-5), at the hands of the Highlanders’ Monica Graff and Hannelore MacDonald.
UMass picked up five wins in singles play with the only loss coming from the No. 1 seed, Motyl, who was defeated in three well-played sets, 6-3, 6-7 (9), 7-10, by Ksenia Kuzmenko.
“[Yuliana] started off the match very well, and had [Kuzmenko] on the ropes, but couldn’t close out the second set,” Dixon said. “She’s so young and she’s really good and will figure out how to close matches. She played like a No. 1 and I expect her to improve her game as things come along.”
Notable singles victories came from Comas (6-4, 6-3), Boney (6-0, 6-4), Clara Matias (7-5, 6-4) and Carpenter (6-4, 6-3), all coming in hard-fought matches.
With the next six matches for the Minutewomen coming in a span of 14 days, Dixon will look for her team to, “find their identity. I feel sometimes that, on one day, half the team will have the edgy attitude necessary to win and the next day, the other half will. Being great means that you bring it every time out and they must find a way to be focused if they want more out of this season.”
With upcoming matches against Army, Connecticut and Dartmouth no longer on the horizon but knocking on the door, Dixon will look for her team to come together as the season gets into full swing.
“This is the meat of our season, the part where we can separate ourselves, or collapse and fall to the basement of the standings,” Dixon said. “This is where we have to find and play our best game.”
Dixon still believes that her team is “completely capable” of winning the Atlantic 10 conference title, but things must come together quickly in order for that goal to be met.
“We’re still a favorite to win, based on our talent and depth and I don’t have any reason to argue with that,” Dixon said. “It’s a matter of putting together that talent, focus and energy as soon as possible, because now, we’re battling time and it will eventually run out.”
Scott Cournoyer can be reached at [email protected].
