Yeowomen ace first match of the season

Tara Sievers is unbeatable in debut performance

Last week, Coach Don Hunsinger predicted that the women's tennis team would win their first three matches. After their first match, they're one-third of the way there.

"We really dominated," Hunsinger said, referring to last Saturday's match against Carnegie Mellon University. The Yeowomen ripped through a Carnegie Mellon team to run away with the 7-2 victory.

The Yeowomen slammed past their opponents in four of their six singles matches and crushed all three of their doubles matches. Oberlin had the home and turf advantages over a team that doesn't have indoor tennis courts.

The number two doubles team of junior Erika Bradford and first-year Tara Sievers had no trouble winning their first match of the season 8-0 in an eight game pro set. Sievers was unbeatable, squashing her number four singles opponent 6-0, 6-0.

"It was not too much of a challenge," Sievers said. "They are definitely not one of the strongest teams we are going up against."

The team received a boost of confidence from the easy win, despite Carnegie's inability to put up a good fight. Bradford said, "It does not help your game."

While most of the team easily disposed of their opponents, junior Bethany Pribila faced CMU's Keri Mills. Last year, Mills finished second in Division III singles. Pribila battled feriously before succumbing(6-4, 4-6, 6-2) in a match that could've gone either way.

Hunsinger said, "She executed her game plan almost flawlessly."

Senior Julieta del Rio, the number-five singles player had problems with her singles match. She was a little nervous.

"Julieta needs to relax. She was very nervous," Hunsinger said. She played fine in doubles, but her nerves in the singles failed her as she fell 6-3, 7-6(7-5).

Hunsinger is confident that she will rebound and cited her year's absence from competition as the probable cause.

The Yeowomen's second match was canceled because of adverse weather conditions. Oberlin's next match of the season is tomorrow against Siena Heights College at 1:00 p.m.