The Massachusetts tennis team is rolling this season, and spring break didn’t slow it down at all.
UMass took to Charleston, South Carolina, over the break and won three huge matches versus College of Charleston, Towson and Charleston Southern.
In their first match against Charleston Southern, Brittany Collens had a huge three-set win in No. 6 singles, pushing the Minutewomen to the win. Collens stepped up while filling in due to injuries on the roster, and although she fell in her first set, Collens came back strong and took the following sets 6-1 and 6-4 for the match-clinching win.
No. 1 singles player Ana Yrazusta also turned in a clutch performance, winning her match with the team down 3-2 and facing defeat with one more loss. Her win tied the score at 3-3 after the Cougars (11-5) took wins at No. 3, 4 and 5 singles, setting up Collens to come in and finish strong for the win.
Two days later, UMass took on Towson and won its third straight match 5-2. Singles depth proved to be the key, as the Minutewomen won No. 4, 5 and 6 singles games. These matches minimized losses at the No. 1 and 3 singles slots.
In its final match of the week, UMass took on Charleston. The Minutewomen swept the doubles to start off the match, but the Buccaneers fought back to win No. 3 and 5 singles. However, wins from Ruth Crawford, Yrazusta and Arielle Griffin in singles matches paved the way to another UMass victory.
Overall, it was a highly successful weekend for the Minutewomen. Dixon is very proud of the way her team has performed over the last stretch.
“We played three very good teams.” Dixon said. “We could have come out 3-0, 0-3, or anywhere in between.”
This time of year is very tricky for tennis. With New England’s unpredictable weather, the team is always changing practice and match conditions.
“Sometimes we are indoors, sometimes we are outdoors, you really never know with this weather.” Dixon said. “We were outside in South Carolina, but our next match against Fairleigh Dickson is indoors, then we go back outside again. The playing conditions are always changing.”
Resilience was a word that Dixon used a lot to describe her team. She is very proud of how the team has adapted to the changing environment, and have always stayed hungry every day.
Looking ahead, the Minutewomen are back in action on Saturday, April 2 with the indoor match against Fairleigh Dickson.
Tyler Movsessian can be reached at [email protected].