After the NBA saw its regular season end, Los Angeles Lakers’ star Kobe Bryant had the following to say about his team’s finish: “It’s all about momentum. You want to be playing your best going into the playoffs.”
Binghamton University’s women’s tennis hopes that its momentum can carry it to an America East Conference Championship. The Bearcats (11-5, 2-0 AE) marched to a 7-0 win over the Albany Great Danes (16-6, 0-3) for their fifth straight victory in their last regular season dual match on Saturday. The Bearcats also defeated the Colgate Red Raiders (11-9, 2-2 Patriot League) 5-2 last Wednesday.
The Bearcats dominated their dual against the Great Danes. Freshman and top singles player Anna Edelman defeated Aimee Kern 6-0, 6-2, and finished her season with a team-best 13-3 record. Freshman Lauren Bates rolled over Susan Ma 6-0, 6-0 at second singles to bring her record to 12-4 for the year. It was a quality win for Bates, as Ma was awarded America East Athlete of the Week on March 6. Sophomore Danyelle Shapiro also won in straight sets (6-4, 6-2) at the fourth spot, and improved to her overall record to 10-6 with a win over Charlotte Tatler. Sophmore Erica Rosenblum cruised to a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Laine Mackey at fifth singles to run her record to 7-9.
Freshman Yulia Smirnova and senior Gayathri Balasundar, playing at third and sixth singles respectively, won in tougher encounters. Smirnova rallied for a 4-6, 6-3, 13-11 win over Kim Weltman, while Balasundar fought her way to a 4-6, 6-3, 11-9 victory. They are 11-5 and 9-7 for the year respectively.
The Bearcats were as dominant in doubles as they were in singles. Edelman and Bates notched a 8-2 victory over Kern and Ma to improve to 14-2 as a doubles team. Rosenblum and Balasundar won 8-5 over Mackey and Hall, while Smirnova and Shapiro won 8-4 over Weltman and Tatler. The two teams improved to 12-4 and 11-5 respectively.
“I think we are very prepared for conference. We just got our fifth win in a row, so we are definitely more confident that we were before,” said Edelman after the defeat of Albany.
Binghamton played solid tennis in its 5-2 victory over the Red Raiders as well. Edelman defeated Elisa DeRose 6-1, 6-4. Bates cruised to a 6-1, 6-1 win over Samantha Inacker. Together, the tandem defeated DeRose and Inacker in doubles 8-2. Smirnova won at third singles against Isaber Riemer 6-4, 6-2. Shapiro was ahead 3-0 in the first set of her match when her opponent, Cameron Williams, retired due to injury. They defeated Erin Fenn and Riemer in doubles 8-5. Rosenblum and Balasundar dropped their singles matches to Fenn and Stephanie Bender, but did post a victory in doubles over Williams and Bender 8-5.
The Bearcats are now set for the America East Conference Tournament, which begins on Friday. Binghamton will be seeded anywhere from second through fourth. Their opponent for their first match is still to be determined, as Albany will face the Hartford Hawks today at 4:30 p.m. in a match that will determine which of those teams finishes in fifth and sixth place in the AE. Regardless of their opponent, the Bearcats have made at least one promise about their huge upcoming weekend.
“We are ready to compete hard with the upcoming schools,” said Balasundar.