Whitman's Elise Otto and Margo Lentz were knocked from the Ojai Valley Tennis Tournament's doubles bracket Friday afternoon by a twosome from Fresno Pacific, the nation's second-ranked NAIA team.
Otto and Lentz, who won their first-round match Friday, fell 6-3, 6-0 in the second round to Fresno Pacific senior Amandine Ferot (Paris, France) and her sophomore teammate, Katia Sabate (Barcelona, Spain).
Otto, a first-year player, and Lentz, a junior, were competing in the "women's independent colleges" doubles bracket. Fresno Pacific has rolled to a 17-1 record this season, which includes a 8-0 mark in the Golden State Athletic Conference. Other schools in that conference include Azusa Pacific, Biola, Point Loma Nazarene and Westmont.
As Whitman's No. 1 doubles team this past spring, Otto and Lentz posted a 15-4 record against Northwest Conference opponents.
Junior Margo Lentz and first-year teammate Elise Otto, Whitman's No. 1 doubles team this past spring, rallied for a 6-7, 6-1, 6-1 victory in Thursday afternoon's opening round of doubles play at California's 108th annual Ojai Valley Tennis Tournament.
The Whitman duo downed a doubles combo from the University of California-Santa Cruz, senior Chayla Furlong and first-year teammate Taylor Mannix. The victory moves Otto and Lentz into a second-round match at noon Friday against the bracket's third-seeded team, Fresno Pacific's Amandine Ferot (Paris, France) and Katia Sabate (Barcelona, Spain). Fresno Pacific is an NAIA school.
Earlier on Thursday, Otto came up just short in the opening round of singles, falling 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 to Paige Sumida, a sophomore at the University of Redlands. Sumida, who is No. 10 in the regional singles rankings, plays either No. 1 or No. 2 singles for Redlands, which recently captured its conference title and is ranked No. 10 nationally.
Otto, who is No. 13 in the latest regional singles rankings, earned All-Northwest Conference First-Team honors this past spring. Lentz is not playing in the singles portion of the Ojai tournament.
The Whitman women's tennis team wrote a strong finish to its season with a 6-3 victory over Pacific Lutheran to claim third place at the Northwest Conference championships Saturday morning at the Yakima (Wash.) Tennis Club.
Whitman, which made it through the season with just seven players, jumped on Pacific Lutheran in doubles, winning all three matches to grab a 3-0 lead. The Missionaries then picked off three of the first four decisions in singles to nail down the overall victory.
Whitman also beat Pacific Lutheran for third place at the end of last year's championship tournament.
Junior Margo Lentz and first-year teammate Elise Otto led the charge in doubles, winning 8-3 at No. 1. Junior Alex Robinson and sophomore Hadley DeBree won 8-5 at No. 2 doubles, and it was junior Katie Oost and sophomore Divneet Kaur winning 8-4 at No. 3.
Otto was a 6-2, 6-4 winner at No. 1 singles. Kaur persevered for a 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 victory at No. 3, and Oost cruised to a 6-2, 6-2 win at No. 4 singles.
Otto finished her first season with a 15-4 record in NWC singles play. Oost finished at 15-3 while Kaur was 13-5.
Whitman, No. 12 in the most recent regional rankings, was 10-6 during the NWC regular season and 14-12 overall.
Defending champion Linfield notched a 7-2 victory over Whitman Friday afternoon in the semifinals of the women's Northwest Conference tennis championships at the Yakima (Wash.) Tennis Club.
The loss dropped Whitman, now 13-12 on the season, into a Saturday morning match against Pacific Lutheran for third and fourth place. Pacific Lutheran lost Friday's other semifinal, falling 5-4 to second-seeded Whitworth.
Linfield and Whitworth are set to meet in the conference title match at noon Saturday.
Linfield grabbed an early 2-1 lead against Whitman with wins in two of three matches in doubles. Whitman scored its point at No. 3, where junior Katie Oost and sophomore Divneet Kaur posted an 8-2 victory.
Singles, however, were almost all Linfield. Sophomore Hadley DeBree picked up Whitman's only point at No. 2 with a 6-3, 6-2 win. Oost fell 7-5, 6-3 at No. 4 singles, and junior Alex Robinson dropped a 9-7 single-set decision at No. 5.
Whitman's Saturday match is slated for a 9 a.m. start. Whitman has a pair of victories, 8-1 and 6-3, over Pacific Lutheran earlier this season.
Winning two of three matches in doubles and three of the first four decisions in singles, Whitman slipped past Willamette 5-2 Friday morning in the opening round of the women's Northwest Conference tennis championships at the Yakima (Wash.) Tennis Club.
Whitman, now 13-11 on the season, advances to play Linfield, the top seed in the women's bracket, in a 12:30 p.m. semifinal match.
In Friday morning's other first-round match, Pacific Lutheran knocked off Lewis & Clark 6-3. The Lutes advance to a 12:30 p.m. semifinal against second-seeded Whitworth.
Whitman, the No. 4 seed, got the early jump on Willamette with victories at No. 1 and No. 3 doubles. Junior Margo Lentz and first-year teammate Elise Otto won 8-4 in the top spot while junior Katie Oost and sophomore Divneet Kaur cruised to an 8-2 win at No. 3.
Sophomore Hadley DeBree along with Otto and Oost notched straight-set victories in singles to clinch the team triumph. When Whitman tallied its fifth team point, two matches were still in progress and not completed.
Otto ran her NWC singles record to 14-3 with a 6-0, 6-3 win at No. 1 singles. DeBree improved her singles mark to 13-4 with a 6-3, 6-1 victory at No. 2. Oost, now 14-2 in NWC singles play, won 7-5, 6-1 at No. 4.
At No. 3 singles, Kaur and Willamette's Alaine Anderson were all even at 1-1 in the third set when that match was halted. Alex Robinson, a Whitman junior playing at No. 5 singles, was leading Jamie Slonaker 4-1 in their third set when that match was stopped.
Willamette, after losing for the third time this season to Whitman, will play Lewis & Clark later today for fifth place.
Sunday, April 13; Walla Walla, Wash.
Whitworth rallied to claim the last two decisions in singles and squeak past Whitman 5-4 in Northwest Conference women's tennis action Sunday afternoon on the Missionary outdoor courts.
The match, the regular season finale for both teams, left Whitworth with records of 14-2 in the NWC and 16-4 overall. Whitman, dropping its third one-point decision of the conference season, finished at 12-11 and 10-6. Whitworth will be the No. 2 seed at next weekend's NWC championship tournament while Whitman will take the No. 4 seed.
Whitman seized the early advantage Sunday, winning two of three matches in doubles. The host squad won at No. 1 doubles, where junior Margo Lentz and first-year teammate Elise Otto were 8-6 winners, and at No. 3, where junior Katie Oost and sophomore Divneet Kaur posted an 8-3 victory.
Whitworth scored its team point in doubles at No. 2, where Linh Aven and Katie Staudinger notched an 8-2 win.
Whitman upped its lead in the team scoring to 3-1 when Otto scored a quick 6-3, 6-0 victory at No. 1 singles. The Missionaries moved within a point of victory by taking one of the next three decisions. Sophomore Hadley DeBree tallied Whitman's fourth point with a 6-7 (7-1), 6-3, 6-3 comeback at No. 2, but the Pirates were climbing back into the match behind Aven's 6-3, 7-5 win at No. 3 and Staudinger's 7-6 (9-7), 6-3 victory at No. 4.
After Whitworth's Taryn Smith evened the team score at 4-4 with a 6-0, 6-1 triumph at No. 6 singles, Justine Hays completed the Pirate rally with a hard-fought 7-6 (7-4), 7-5 decision at No. 5.
The conference championship tournament begins Friday and continues through Saturday at the Yakima (Wash.) Tennis Club.
Saturday, April 12; Walla Walla, Wash.
A pair of close decisions in doubles set the tone for singles as Lewis & Clark eased past Whitman 6-3 in Saturday afternoon women's tennis action on the campus outdoor courts.
The Pioneers improved to 11-7 on the season and wrapped up the Northwest Conference regular season with an 11-5 mark. Whitman, now 12-10 overall and 10-5 in the NWC, returns to the outdoor courts at 1 p.m. Sunday to host Whitworth (15-4, 13-2) in the regular season finale for both clubs.
Lewis & Clark got the early jump Saturday by taking two of three matches in doubles. Amalia Nilsson and Whitney DeBree slipped past Whitman's Elise Otto and Margo Lentz by an 8-6 margin at No. 1. The score was the same at No. 2 doubles, where Pioneers Maggie Peach and Lisa Harunaga got the best of Hadley DeBree and Alex Robinson.
Whitman scored its doubles point at No. 3 with Katie Oost and Divneet Kaur downing Paige Earhart and Teresa Kiemnec by an 8-1 count.
Early in singles, Whitman pulled ahead 3-2 in the team scoring as Kaur and Oost polished off quick wins at No. 3 and No. 4, respectively. But Lewis & Clark swept the four remaining singles matches to post the victory.
In a battle of first-year players at No. 1 singles, Nilsson won a lengthy first-set tie-breaker en route to a 7-6 (10-8), 6-1 win over Otto. Nilsson is 16-0 in singles this season against NWC opponents.
No. 5 singles was also a battle with Peach bouncing back for a 2-6, 6-4, 10-5 victory.
The NWC championship tournament is set for next Friday and Saturday in Yakima, Wash.
Saturday, April 5; Tacoma, Wash.
Coming within a few points of its sixth shutout of the season, the Whitman women's tennis team downed Puget Sound 8-1 Saturday afternoon in Tacoma, Wash. The Missionaries remain in fourth place in the Northwest Conference with a 10-4 record (12-9 overall). Saturday's loss dropped Puget Sound to 2-12 in conference and 3-13 on the season.
The only close match in the opening doubles came at No. 2, where Whitman's Alex Robinson and Hadley DeBree won 9-7. At No. 1 doubles, Elise Otto and Margo Lentz were 8-2 winners, the same score by which Divneet Kaur and Katie Oost were victorious at No. 3.
In singles, Otto, DeBree and Kaur swept the top three matches while losing just two games each. Oost went one better at No. 4, winning 6-0, 6-1.
The last two singles matches were both settled in third-set tie-breakers. Robinson rallied for a 6-7, 6-3, 10-4 win at No. 5, but Jacquie Frank dropped a 5-7, 6-4, 10-4 decision to Puget Sound's Penny Horowitz at No. 6.
Whitman concludes its regular season next weekend when it hosts Lewis & Clark on Saturday and Whitworth on Sunday. Both matches are set to start at 1 p.m.
Friday, April 4; Tacoma, Wash.
Playing late at night was no problem for the Whitman women's tennis team Friday as it outscored Pacific Lutheran 6-3 in Tacoma, Wash. Because of poor weather, the match start time was pushed back from 4 to 8 p.m. and the competition moved from the Pacific Lutheran outdoor courts to the indoor facility at nearby Puget Sound.
Whitman, now 9-4 in the Northwest Conference and 11-9 overall, took the early lead by winning two of three matches in doubles and then finished off the victory with wins in four of the six matches in singles.
Elise Otto, Whitman's first-year ace, cruised to an quick triumph at No. 1 singles, improving her record in conference play to 11-2 in the top spot. Sophomore Divneet Kaur rallied at No. 3 singles for a 2-6, 6-0, 7-6 (7-4) win at No. 3, upping her NWC singles mark to 10-3. Junior Katie Oost rolled to an easy win at No. 4 to extend her conference record to 11-1.
Jacquie Frank, a junior, picked off Whitman's fourth win in singles with a three-set battle at No. 6. Frank won 7-6 (7-5), 4-6, 6-2.
Both of Whitman's victories in doubles were one-sided affairs. Otto teamed with junior Margo Lentz for an 8-3 win at No. 1, while Kaur and Oost were 8-0 winners at No. 3. Junior Alex Robinson and sophomore Hadley DeBree nearly gave Whitman a doubles sweep but fell 8-6 at No. 2.
Pacific Lutheran, losing for the second time this season to Whitman, saw its record slip to 6-7 in the NWC and 8-8 overall.
Whitman continues to NWC play Saturday with a 1 p.m. match against Puget Sound.
Sunday, March 30; Walla Walla, Wash.
Playing its second match of the day, Whitman surrendered a 9-0 non-conference decision to Lewis-Clark State Sunday evening in the Bratton Tennis Center. The Warriors, ranked No. 14 nationally in the NAIA, improved to 8-6 on the season while Whitman slipped to 10-9 overall.
After sweeping the three doubles matches, Lewis-Clark State had its hands full in the top four singles matches. Elise Otto, a first-year Missionary, put up a good fight at No. 1 singles, falling 5-7, 7-6, 10-6 to Shefat Baishakhi, a junior from Dhaka, Bangladesh. Divneet Kaur, a Whitman sophomore, lost 5-7, 6-3, 10-8 at No. 3 singles to senior Kaylan Crane.
The difference between winning and losing was also a small one at No. 2 singles, where Whitman sophomore Hadley DeBree lost 6-4, 6-4 to junior Jamie Chan. In a battle of juniors at No. 4, Whitman's Katie Oost nearly forced a third set in losing 6-1, 7-5.
Whitman returns to Northwest Conference action this weekend, playing Friday at Pacific Lutheran and Saturday at Puget Sound.
Sunday, March 30; Walla Walla, Wash.
The tie-breakers were anything but kind to the Whitman women's tennis team as it dropped a 7-2 Northwest Conference decision to Linfield Sunday afternoon at the Bratton Tennis Center.
The six-time defending NWC champion Wildcats won their 92nd consecutive conference match, improving to 11-0 this spring against league opponents and 11-5 overall. Hard-luck Whitman, now 8-4 and 10-8, lost the No. 2 doubles match on a tie-breaker and dropped five of six set tie-breakers in singles.
Linfield, ranked No. 7 in the west region, took two of three matches in doubles to pocket the early lead in the team scoring. The key match came at No. 2 doubles, where Molly Nelson and Kelli Sides outlasted Whitman's Hadley DeBree and Alex Robinson by a 9-8 (8-6) count. DeBree and Robinson broke serve to even the the match at 8-8 and bolted to leads of 4-0 and 5-2 in the tie-breaker before Nelson and Sides rallied for the victory.
Whitman, ranked No. 14 regionally, scored its point in doubles at No. 3, where Divneet Kaur and Katie Oost edged Sophie Larson and Sarah Click 9-7. In No. 1 doubles, Linfield's Kasey Kuenzli and Sallie Katter outpointed Elise Otto and Margo Lentz 8-5.
The Wildcats then picked off the first three decisions in singles to clinch the team victory. At No. 1, Kuenzli got past Otto 6-1, 7-6 (7-3), avenging a loss to the first-year Missionary player earlier in the season. At No. 4, Larson nipped Oost 6-3, 7-6 (7-1), and Katter snared another point for Linfield at No. 3, nipping Divneet Kaur 7-5, 6-4.
DeBree got Whitman back into the win column with a 6-4, 7-6 (11-9) decision over Sides at No. 2 singles.
Sarah Click gave the Wildcats a 6-2 lead with a quick two-set win at No. 6 singles, but the match at No. 5 evolved into one of the day's best battles. Nelson finally put the finishing touch on Linfield's day by outscrambling Robinson 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-3).
Following the match, Whitman stayed on the Bratton courts to host Lewis-Clark State in a non-conference match. The Missionaries head to Tacoma next Friday and Saturday for NWC matches with Pacific Lutheran and Puget Sound.
Linfield plays at Lewis & Clark next Friday and then hosts Pacific on Saturday.
Friday, March 28; Walla Walla, Wash.
Katie Oost remained undefeated in Northwest Conference singles play as the Whitman women's tennis team scored a 6-3 victory over Willamette Friday afternoon at the Bratton Tennis Center.
Whitman raised its record to 10-7 on the season and 8-3 in the NWC. Willamette is 4-9 overall and 4-6 in conference.
Oost, a junior, had no trouble at No. 4 singles, winning 6-1, 6-0. That extended her singles record to 10-0 in the NWC and 13-2 overall.
Oost also teamed with Divneet Kaur for a quick 8-1 victory at No. 3 doubles. Whitman picked up the win as well at No. 1 doubles, where Margo Lentz and Elise Otto rolled 8-2, to take an early 2-1 lead in the team scoring.
Tiffany Kam and Abby Funabiki snared a point for Willamette at No. 2 doubles, winning 8-1.
Whitman locked up the team triumph by winning the first four matches in singles. Otto, a first-year player, won 6-4, 6-1 at No. 1 singles, running her conference record to 10-1. Hadley DeBree and Kaur, two sophomores, were winners in the No. 2 and No. 3 matches, respectively. Both players are now 9-2 in singles against NWC foes.
Alex Robinson, a Whitman junior, saw her conference singles mark slip to 9-2 when her match at No. 5 slipped away. Willamette's Jamie Sloanker rallied to win 2-6, 7-6 (8-4), 10-7.
Willamette picked up its third team point at No. 6 singles, where Samantha Won downed Jacquie Frank 7-5, 6-0.
Whitman takes Saturday off but then plays a pair of matches on Sunday. Linfield, which begins the weekend in first place with a 9-0 NWC record, will battle Whitman at 11 a.m. A second match is set for 4 p.m. with Lewis-Clark State, an NAIA school, providing the opposition.
Willamette is in Spokane Saturday for a 9 a.m. match against Whitworth.
Wednesday, March 26; Walla Walla, Wash.
Playing its first match in 11 days, the Whitman women's tennis team dropped an 8-1 decision to nationally ranked University of California-Santa Cruz in the Bratton Tennis Center Wednesday afternoon.
The Banana Slugs, ranked No. 19 as an NCAA Div. III independent, improved to 5-7 on the season and 5-1 against Division III opponents. Whitman's season record fell to 9-7.
Katie Oost and Divneet Kaur captured Whitman's lone team point at No. 3 doubles, winning 8-6. Both players also came close to picking off victories in singles. Kaur lost 7-6 (7-4), 2-6, 6-3 at No. 4 while Oost was edged 7-6 (7-4), 7-5 at No. 5.
Elise Otto, a first-year Missionary, staged a good battle at No. 1 singles, falling in two competitive sets to Santa Cruz senior Jessica Ruth. In the latest West Region singles rankings, Ruth is No. 4 and Otto No. 13.
Whitman stays at home this weekend for a series of three matches, starting with Willamette on Friday afternoon. Whitman faces Linfield, the Northwest Conference leader, at 11 a.m. Sunday. The Missionaries then wrap up the weekend with a non-conference match at 4 p.m. Sunday against Lewis-Clark State.
Saturday, March 15; Georgetown, Texas
Playing its second match of the day, the Whitman women's tennis team ended its Spring Break trip through Texas on a winning note late Saturday afternoon, edging Southwestern 5-4 in Georgetown.
Whitman, now 9-6 on the season, won two of three matches in doubles to take the early 2-1 lead in team scoring. Margo Lentz and Elise Otto won 8-4 at No. 1 doubles, and Katie Oost and Divneet Kaur were 8-3 winners at No. 3. Hadley DeBree and Jacquie Frank put up a good fight at No. 3, falling 8-6.
Whitman pulled out the victory by getting straight-set decisions from Debree at No. 2, Kaur at No. 4, and Oost at No. 5. Alex Robinson dropped a close 7-5, 6-4 match at No. 6.
Southwestern, which plays in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference, saw its season record fall to 3-5.
Whitman plays its next four matches at home, starting with a Wednesday, March 26, home date with the University of California-Santa Cruz, which is ranked No. 19 nationally.
Saturday, March 15; Georgetown, Texas
After losing the first two matches on its Spring Break swing through Texas, the Whitman women's tennis team returned to the win column Saturday morning with a 9-0 shutout of Howard Payne University in Georgetown, Texas.
Two of the three opening matches in doubles were close. Margo Lentz and Elise Otto won 8-6 at No. 1, as did Alex Robinson and Hadley DeBree at No. 2. Katie Oost and Divneet Kaur breezed to an 8-0 victory at No. 3.
Scoring in singles was for the most part one-sided. Oost won 6-0, 6-0 at No. 5, Otto dominated 6-0, 6-1 at No. 1, and DeBree lost just two g ames at No. 2. Lentz got past her opponent 7-6, 6-2 at No. 3. Kaur at No. 4 and Robinson at No. 6 completed the sweep in singles.
Whitman takes an 8-6 record into a match this afternoon at Southwestern University.
Friday, March 14; Abilene, Texas
Katie Oost picked off a victory at No. 5 singles, but the Whitman women's tennis team dropped four other close matches in losing 8-1 to Hardin-Simmons University Friday afternoon in Abilene, Texas.
The Cowgirls, coming off their seventh consecutive American Southwest Conference championships, improved to 4-3 on the season while Whitman slipped to 7-6.
In a battle of juniors, Oost rolled to a 6-2, 6-1 victory over HSU's Bria Camarillo in the No. 5 singles match. Missionaries losing narrow decisions in singles were sophomore Divneet Kaur (6-4, 3-6, 6-2) at No. 4, junior Margo Lentz (7-6, 6-3) at No. 3, and first-player Elise Otto (7-5, 6-3) at No. 1. Otto's loss came at the hands of senior Tracy Henington, who holds a No. 46 national ranking in singles.
Hardin-Simmons took the early lead with a sweep of the three matches in doubles. Oost and Kaur came up just short at No. 3 doubles, falling 8-6.
Whitman wraps up its Spring Break through Texas with a pair of matches Saturday in Georgetown. The Missionaries play Howard Payne at 9 a.m. and Southwestern at 4 p.m.
Wednesday, March 12; San Antonio, Texas
The Whitman women's tennis team suffered its first shutout loss of the season Wednesday, falling 9-0 to nationally ranked Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas.
The loss, coming on the first day of a four-match Spring Break swing through the Lonestar State, dropped Whitman to 7-5 on the season. Trinity, posting its fourth shutout in its last five matches, improved to 6-2 on the season.
Sophomore Hadley DeBree nearly broke up the shutout for Whitman at No. 2 singles, where she lost 1-6, 6-1, 10-8 to Trinity's Megan Fish. Missionary junior Katie Oost nearly forced a third set at No. 4 singles, losing 6-4.
Trinity, led by All-Americans Alicia Hunt and Laura Steinmetz, is on the rebound this spring after its string of 15 consecutive Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference titles was snapped last season. The Tigers are No. 11 in the latest NCAA Div. III national rankings.
Whitman continues its Texas trip when it plays at Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene. The Cowgirls, coming off their seventh consecutive American Southwest Conference championships, are off to a 3-3 start this season and have won 69 consecutive ASC matches.
The Whitman women's tennis team polished off its second victory of the day with a 9-0 Northwest Conference triumph over Pacific Sunday afternoon at the Tualatin Hills Tennis Center in Beaverton, Ore.
Whitman, now 7-3 in the NWC and 7-4 overall, leave Monday for a series of four Spring Break matches in Texas, starting with a Wednesday battle with Trinity University in San Antonio. The Tigers, a perennial power in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference, are 5-2 on the season and ranked No. 11 nationally in NCAA Div. III.
A sweep in doubles set the tone for Whitman's victory over Pacific on Sunday. Losing to Whitman for the second time this season, Pacific slipped to 0-9 in the NWC and 0-10 overall.
Whitman won five of the six singles matches in straight sets. Sophomore Divneet Kaur scored a 6-0, 6-0 victory at No. 3, and teammates Elise Otto, Hadley DeBree and Katie Oost lost just two games each in winning their matches. Alex Robinson was a 6-1, 6-2 winner at No. 5, and Jacquie Frank rallied for a 6-7, 6-4, 10-6 victory at No. 6.
In the first of two matches slated for Sunday, the Whitman women's tennis team knocked off George Fox 8-1 in Newberg, Ore. Downing the Bruins for the second time this season, the Missionaries improved to 6-3 in the Northwest Conference while George Fox slid to 1-8.
Elise Otto, a first-year player, paced the Whitman victory with wins at No. 1 singles and No. 2 doubles (with sophomore Margo Lentz). Junior Katie Oost improved to 9-0 in NWC singles with a 6-0, 6-1 triumph at No. 4. Other Whitman winners were sophomores Hadley DeBree and Divneet Kaur and junior Alex Robinson.
DeBree and Oost combined for the win at No. 2 doubles. At No. 3 doubles, it was Kaur teaming with junior Jacquie Frank for the victory.
After the match, Whitman headed to nearby Forest Grove, Ore., to play Pacific.
Whitman wrapped up the first half of its Northwest Conference women's tennis schedule with a tough 5-4 loss to Lewis & Clark Saturday afternoon in Portland, Ore.
Whitman, which also dropped a 5-4 decision earlier this season at conference-leading Linfield, is now 5-4 on the season and 5-3 in the NWC. Lewis & Clark, 6-3 overall, is 6-1 in conference and tied for second place with Whitworth.
All three of Whitman's first-half losses came on the road, which means the Missionaries will host each of those teams during the second half of the conference season.
Lewis & Clark took an early lead in Saturday's team scoring by winning two of three matches in doubles. A key battle was waged at No. 1 doubles, where first-year Pioneers Amalia Nilsson and Whitney DeBree squeezed past Margo Lentz and Elise Otto by an 8-6 count. Whitman scored its double point at No. 3, where sophomore Divneet Kaur teamed with junior Jacquie Frank for an 8-0 victory.
Otto, Whitman's first-year ace, dropped a close 6-4, 7-5 decision to Nilsson in the No. 1 singles match. It was Otto's first singles loss of the season in a conference match.
Lewis & Clark sealed its team triumph with two more narrow wins in singles. Whitman sophomore Hadley DeBree fell 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 at No. 2 while Lentz, a sophomore, lost 6-2, 7-5 at No. 3.
Kaur got the win for Whitman at No. 4 singles, and junior Katie Oost ran her NWC singles record to 8-0 with a 6-1, 6-0 victory at No. 5. Junior Alex Robinson was a 6-3, 6-3 winner for the Missionaries at No. 6.
Whitman has two NWC matches slated for Sunday, starting at 9 a.m. at George Fox followed by a 3 p.m. match at Pacific. Whitman blanked both teams 9-0 earlier this season in Walla Walla.
Winning its third consecutive match, the Whitman women's tennis team dismantled Pacific Lutheran 8-1 Sunday afternoon on the Missionary outdoor courts. Whitman elevated its NWC record to 5-2 while Pacific Lutheran, a 5-4 loser to Whitworth on Saturday, slid to 3-3 in the conference standings.
"Our doubles teams were really charged up today," said Whitman coach Hannah Swee. Sophomore Margo Lentz and first-year teammate Elise Otto were easy 8-1 winners at No. 1 doubles. Sophomore Hadley DeBree and junior Katie Oost won 8-4 at No. 2, and it was sophomore Divneet Kaur and junior Jacquie Frank claiming an 8-6 victory at No. 3 doubles.
Both the No. 1 and No. 2 singles matches went three sets with Whitman emerging on top in each case. Otto continued her perfect NWC season at No. 1, rallying past Erika Feltus, a senior and a two-time, first-team all-conference player, for a 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 win. DeBree outlasted PLU senior Liz Currey for a 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 victory.
The Lutes scored their only team point at No. 3 singles, where sophomore Ashley Coats won in straight sets.
Whitman also got wins in singles from Kaur at No. 4 and junior Alex Robinson at No. 6. Oost won by default at No. 5 singles after first-year opponent Emily Starr succumbed to a bout of nausea. Under normal circumstances, PLU could have bumped up its No. 6 player to No. 5 and used an alternate in the No. 6 slot. But the matches had been re-ordered at the PLU's request and the No. 6 match was already on the court.
"They had a couple players who were car-sick," Swee said. "It’s unfortunate. You always want to play."
Whitman has a big test looming next weekend in the Portland area, squaring off against Lewis & Clark at 11 a.m. Saturday. Matches against George Fox and Pacific follow at 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. Sunday. The Lutes play three matches as well next weekend, all at home. The first comes at 3:30 p.m. Friday, March 7, against Linfield.
The Whitman women’s tennis team got its weekend off to a perfect start with a 9-0 Northwest Conference victoiry over Puget Sound Saturday afternoon in the Bratton Tennis Center. Whitman bumped its NWC record to 4-2 and dropped the Loggers to 1-5.
Elise Otto, Whitman's first-year ace, remained perfect in conference singles play, extending her record to 6-0 in the No. 1 slot. Katie Oost, a junior, also ran her NWC singles record to 6-0, with the victory at No. 5.
Puget Sound senior Penny Horowitz nearly spoiled Whitman’s perfect day, pushing Whitman junior Alex Robinson to three sets at No. 6 singles. Robinson rallied for a 4-6, 6-1, 10-8 victory.
Other winners in singles for Whitman were Hadley DeBree at No. 2, Margo Lentz at No. 3 and Divneet Kaur at No. 4. DeBree and Oost pitched an 8-0 shutout at No. 2 doubles, while Lentz/Otto at No. 1 and Kaur/Jacquie Frank at No. 3 completed the sweep of doubles.
Whitman hosts Pacific Lutheran at noon Sunday. The Loggers don't play again until Friday, March 7, when they host George Fox.
Bouncing back from Friday's narrow loss at Linfield, the Whitman women's tennis team cruised past Willamette 8-1 Saturday in Salem, Ore. The Missionaries improved to 3-2 in the Northwest Conference and 3-3 overall.
Elise Otto, a first-year Missionary, ran her NWC record at No. 1 singles to a perfect 5-0 with a 6-1, 7-5 victory over Willamette senior Tiffany Kam. Katie Oost, a Whitman junior, also pushed her conference singles record to 5-0 with a 6-0, 6-2 win over Emily Elliott, a Bearcat sophomore.
Other Whitman winners in singles were sophomore Hadley DeBree at No. 2, sophomore Margo Lentz at No. 3, sophomore Divneet Kaur at No. 5, and junior Alex Robinson at No. 6. Robinson won her first set on a 7-4 tie-breaker and then rolled to a 6-2 second-set victory.
Willamette salvaged its lone team point with an 8-6 victory at No. 3 doubles.
Whitman returns home next weekend to host Puget Sound on Saturday and Pacific Lutheran on Sunday.
Despite a slow start in doubles, the Whitman women's tennis team came ever so close to knocking off defending Northwest Conference champion Linfield on its home courts Friday afternoon in McMinnville, Ore. A sweep in doubles and two wins in singles were just enough to give the Wildcats a 5-4 victory.
"There were a lot of great matches," Whitman coach Hannah Swee said. "We lost all three points in doubles, but even those matches were close."
Elise Otto, a first-year Missionary, provided one of Whitman's highlights with a 6-1, 2-6, 6-1 victory over Linfield senior Kasey Kuenzli at No. 1 singles. Kuenzli, the NWC Player of the Year in 2006, missed all of last season due to injury.
Whitman also got the win at No. 2 singles, where sophomore Hadley DeBree rallied for a 6-7 (7-5), 6-2, 6-4 triumph over Linfield senior Kelli Sides. Whitman collected straight-set victories at No. 5, where junior Katie Oost downed senior Molly Nelson, and at No. 6, where junior Alex Robinson cruised past first-year Wildcat Sarah Watanabe.
One of the day's best battles in singles came at No. 4, where Sophie Larson, another of Linfield's first-year players, notched a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over sophomore Divneet Kaur.
The most competitive match in doubles unfolded in the No. 1 slot, where Otto and sophomore Margo Lentz dropped an 8-6 decision.
Now 2-2 in the NWC and 2-3 on the season, Whitman plays Willamette at 4 p.m. Saturday in Salem. Linfield improved to 2-0 in conference and 2-2 overall.
Whitman dropped its first Northwest Conference women's tennis match of the season Sunday afternoon, falling 6-3 to Whitworth in Spokane, Wash. Whitman slipped to 2-2 on the season and to 2-1 in the NWC. Winning its third home match of the weekend, Whitworth improved to 3-1 overall and 3-0 in conference.
Sophomore Margo Lentz and first-year teammate Elise Otto scored Whitman's only team point in doubles, winning 8-5 in the No. 1 match. Otto also rallied for a 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 victory over Whitworth's Rachel Burns at No. 1 singles.
Junior Katie Oost posted Whitman's only other victory in singles, winning 6-0, 7-5 at No. 5. DeBree nearly forced her No. 2 singles match to a third set, losing 6-1, 7-5.
Whitman hits the road next weekend, playing Friday at Linfield and Saturday at Willamette.
Pitching its second shutout in as many days, the Whitman women's tennis team cruised to a 9-0 Northwest Conference victory over Pacific on Saturday in the Bratton Tennis Center.
After sweeping the three matches in doubles, Whitman had an easy time in singles, losing no more than two games in a set in five of the six matches. At No. 4 singles, sophomore Divneet Kaur outworked Pacific junior Sami Richards for a 6-4 first-set victory and then closed out the win with a 6-0 triumph in set two.
Kaur also teamed with sophomore Hadley DeBree for Whitman's most dominating victory in doubles, an 8-0 win in the No. 2 slot.
Now 2-1 on the season and 2-0 in the NWC, Whitman travels to Spokane on Sunday for a 1 p.m. battle with Whitworth. The Pirates are also off to a 2-0 start in conference after posting 9-0 victories over Pacific and George Fox this weekend.
The Whitman women's tennis team opened its Northwest Conference schedule on a highly successful note Friday afternoon, shutting out George Fox 9-0 in the Bratton Tennis Center. Whitman evened its season record at 1-1 while George Fox was playing its first match of the season.
Sophomore Margo Lentz and first-year teammate Elise Otto led the doubles sweep with an 8-0 victory in the No. 1 match. Sophomores Hadley DeBree and Divneet Kaur were 8-5 winners at No. 2, and juniors Katie Oost and Jacquie Frank posted an 8-4 triumph in the No. 3 slot.
Singles was a different story, although Whitman won all six decisions. Otto at No. 1, DeBree at No. 2 and Oost at No. 3 breezed to straight-set wins, but the other three matches were competitive. In a battle of sophomores at No. 3, Lentz won the first-set tie-breaker 7-3 en route to a victory over Brittany Ekstrom. At No. 4, Kaur edged first-year opponent Mollee Robinson by a 7-6 (7-2), 7-5 count.
Alex Robinson, a Whitman junior, rallied at No. 6 singles for a 2-6, 6-2, 10-4 triumph over first-year Bruin Betsy Ann Penman.
"We had some first home-match jitters, but we overcame them," Whitman coach Hannah Swee said. "It was a good match overall."
Whitman continues NWC play when it hosts Pacific at 11 a.m. Saturday at Bratton. George Fox is in Spokane Saturday for a 10 a.m. match.
Saturday, Feb. 2; Lewiston, Idaho
Playing their first match of the season, the Whitman women's tennis team held its own in doubles but struggled in singles while dropping an 8-1 decision to NAIA Div. I Lewis-Clark State on Saturday in Lewiston, Idaho.
Sophomore Margo Lentz and first-year teammate Elise Otto picked off Whitman's lone team point with an 8-6 victory in the No. 1 doubles match. Missionary sophomores Hadley DeBree and Divneet Kaur put up a good fight at No. 2 doubles, falling 9-8. In the No. 3 doubles match, juniors Katie Oost and Jacquie Frank dropped an 8-3 decision.
The Warriors, who were ranked as high as No. 18 in the NAIA national rankings last season, evened their early season record at 1-1. They swept the six matches in singles, all in straight sets. Shefat Baishakhi, a junior from Dhaka, Bangladesh, rolled to a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Otto at No. 1 singles. The closest match came at No. 5, where Oost lost 7-5, 6-2 to sophomore Megan Smedley.
Whitman takes the next week off before starting the Northwest Conference at home Feb. 15 and 16 against George Fox and Pacific.
Friday, Sept. 28; Salem, Ore.
Sophomore Hadley DeBree and first-year teammate Elise Otto advanced in the singles bracket with victories during Friday's opening day of action at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's Northwest Regional Championships in Salem, Ore.
DeBree, seeded No. 5 in singles, received a first-round bye and defeated Willamette's Samantha Wong 6-0, 7-5 in round two. Otto opened with a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Pacific Lutheran's Deanna Ellmer and then cruised to a 6-1, 6-1 win against Pacific's Dayne Wong.
Whitman sophomore Divneet Kaur, also entered in the singles bracket, posted a 6-0, 6-0 victory over Linfield's Jennifer Yang in the first round. Kaur then dropped a close 6-3, 7-6 (7-4) decision to Willamette's Alaina Anderson, the No. 8 seed.
Because of weather limitations in Salem, only one round of doubles play was completed Friday. DeBree and Kaur, seeded fifth in doubles, received a first-round bye and are slated for a second-round match at 2 p.m. Saturday.
Otto teamed with Whitman sophomore Margo Lentz to score an 8-0 victory over Pacific's Sami Richards and Laura Swanson. Lentz, not fully recovered from a surgery, is playing doubles in this weekend's tournament.
The tournament, hosted by Willamette University, is taking place on campus courts as well as the Salem Tennis & Swim Club.
Saturday, Sept. 29; Salem, Ore.
Whitman's Elise Otto and Margo Lentz continued to win on Saturday, advancing to the final day of competition in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's Northwest Regional Tennis Championships in Salem, Ore.
Elise Otto, a first-year player, won a pair of matches in singles. She beat the No. 3 seed, Pacific Lutheran's Erika Feltus, 6-3, 6-1 in the quarterfinals, after bumping off the No. 7 seed, Linfield's Kelli Sides, by a 6-4, 6-1 count earlier in the day. Otto faces Lewis & Clark's Amalia Nilsson in Sunday morning's semifinals.
In doubles action Saturday, Otto teamed with Lentz, a Missionary sophomore, for two more victories. The Whitman duo, following a 9-7 decision over Linfield's Molly Donahue and Sophie Larson, posted an 8-4 quarterfinal victory over the No. 4 seeds, Willamette's Alaine Anderson and Tiffany Kam.
Otto and Lentz are paired against the top seeds, Linfield's Kasey Kuenzli and Sallie Katter, in one of Sunday's semifinals.
Whitman sophomores Hadley DeBree and Divneet Kaur, the No. 5 seeds in doubles, also played in Saturday's quarterfinals, dropping an 8-3 decision to Nilsson and her Lewis & Clark teammate, Lisa Harunaga.
DeBree lost in the singles bracket on Saturday, falling 6-3, 3-6, 1-0 (10-7) to Linfield's Larson.
Sunday, Sept. 30; Salem, Ore.
A successful run through the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's Northwest Regional Championships came up just a little short on Sunday for Whitman's Elise Otto and Margo Lentz.
Competing at the Courthouse Tennis Club in Salem, Ore., Otto dropped a 6-2, 6-2 decision to Lewis & Clark's Amalia Nilsson in one of the Sunday morning semifinals in singles. Otto, a first-year player, and sophomore teammate Margo Lentz then lost 8-3 in the doubles semifinals to Linfield's Kasey Kuenzli and Sallie Katter.
Later in the day, Kuenzli won the singles title with a 6-4, 6-0 victory over Nilsson. Kuenzli and Katter added the doubles title with a 9-8 (7-4) win over Nilsson and Lisa Harunaga.
Willamette University hosted the tournament.