Over the weekend, the 46th-ranked Alabama women’s tennis team traveled to New Orleans, La., and brought home two big victories. A solid win over Texas Tech 4-3 and a sweep over Tulane 7-0 put the Crimson Tide at 3-1 overall.
Alabama started strong by taking the first three singles wins of the duel, but Texas Tech showed its resilience in the final three sets. No. 74 ranked junior Courtney McLane earned her 6-3, 6-0 win over Tech sophomore Caroline Starck, while the Tide’s freshman dynamo, Mary Anne Macfarlane, ranked No. 15 in the nation, bested Elizabeth Ullathorne, 6-1, 6-1.
Tide senior Meritt Emery claimed her first dual match win of the year against Red Raider freshman Nikki Sanders 6-1, 6-4.
“Texas Tech was a hungry team,” head coach Jenny Mainz said. “They are much better than their rank, and we struggled a bit. In a couple of spots the conditions were in their favor, but it’s good to be in these positions early so we can see a better response for the next time.”
In doubles game play, Alabama fared well, taking two out of three pairs matches. Macfarlane and Antonia Foehse reined in the Tide’s first doubles win against an underclassmen Red Raider duo, 8-6. No. 6 ranked pair, Alexa Guarachi and McLane, took down their opposition 8-5, forcing Texas Tech to face its first loss of the season.
On the next day of competition, Alabama delivered nine total wins over Tulane.
Macfarlane faced Tulane’s top player, senior Mariam Kurdadze, in singles play. Macfarlane fought hard for the win throughout and ended the match 6-1, 7-5, while Foehse entered her second three-setter of the meet and earned a victory over Green Wave sophomore Hila Elster, 6-2, 1-6, 7-5.
“Miriam is a mature player, a seasoned competitor, and I’m very proud of the way Mary Anne got her points early and kept gaining momentum until the end,” Mainz said. “Mary Anne lets them [the opposition] know straight in that she is going to outwork them and that she is not going away.”
Alex Clay collected the day’s third win in the name of the Tide, 6-4, 6-2 over Tulane’s Lindsay Dvorak. Other singles wins include Guarachi finishing her match at 6-3, 6-1 and Lindsey, 6-3, 6-0 against Green Wave sophomore Emma Helisten.
No. 6 ranked McLane and Guarachi took on Kurdadze and sophomore Emma Levy in the first doubles match and earned the first team point of the duel, 8-3. Lindsey and Clay followed their lead with their own victory over Dvorak and Helisten, 8-4 and No. 32 ranked duo, Foehse and Macfarlane, wrapped up doubles play with the final win over Tulane junior Elizabeth Hamlin and her partner, Elster, 8-7(6).
“Courtney and Alexa keep making strides,” Mainz said. “They are constantly improving and they played a solid game against a tough pair.”
Mainz also said she has been trying to instill the idea of “Back to Back Days” into the team. If the team plays well on day one, they are to match it or better it on day two for the positive consistency they need for the future.
Alabama holds its first home match of the season on Feb. 12, playing host to the University of Central Florida and Chattanooga in the afternoon.
