Despite a limited practice schedule, the Washington University women’s tennis team started the season off last weekend at Saint Louis University with solid results.

“I was very happy because we only had three days of practice and everybody was excited to compete,” head coach Kelly Stahlhuth said.

In the first round of the A singles flight, junior Elise Sambol outlasted Elise Nattier of South Missouri State  6-7, 6-2, 10-6, and junior Alex Cassady advanced with a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Laura Garcia of South Missouri State.

“I definitely mixed things up,” Sambol said. “I had some drop shots, I brought her into net, then lobbed her or passed her. It was different than what I usually do but definitely something that I need to do.”

Meanwhile, freshman Kate Klein erupted onto the scene to capture the B singles title, highlighted by a 6-4, 6-4 finals victory over SLU’s Kasia Tomalak. Klein, who defeated four Division I opponents, was named University Athletic Association Athlete of the Week.

This success did not come as a big surprise to Stahlhuth.

“[Klein’s] got a nice multidimensional game,” Stahlhuth said. “She has a great demeanor, and she is a hard worker.”

Often overlooked in singles tournaments, the Lady Bears registered seven back draw wins over both the A and B flights. Sophomore Natalie Tingir and senior Allison Dender each won two back draw matches before playing each other in the back draw finals. Tingir took the match 8-1.

After losing first-round matches, sophomores Luisa Errichetti and Kristen George also recorded back draw victories. When asked how she keeps her players motivated to win after tough losses, Stahlhuth took none of the credit.

“It’s something that is in tennis players,” Stahlhuth said. “If there is a match, they want to win it. These girls are very self-motivated.”

From the captain’s perspective, Dender also offered a resilient attitude toward playing the game.

“Tennis is about 70 percent mental and 30 percent physical,” Dender said. “You have good days, you have bad days, you have tough opponents. But you wake up the next morning and maybe make some adjustments to your game plan. One bad day won’t change the way I approach my game.”

On Friday, the team had a strong doubles tournament. Dender and Tingir won their first-round match 8-1, while Sambol and freshman Paige Madara posted an 8-4 victory. Klein and Cassady defeated their SMS opponents, 8-6.

The Lady Bears look forward to the Washington University Invitational on Sept. 18-20.