Both Washington University tennis teams traveled out of state this weekend. With the congested spring break schedule behind them and UAA championships on the horizon, both teams picked up two wins away from home.

Senior Rebecca Ho goes for a backhand during a match against Rhodes College last year. Ho helped the team take home victories this weekend against DePauw University and Coe College.

Women’s tennis

After opening the season with nine of their first 11 matches against ranked opponents, the women’s tennis team returned to campus from California with a losing record of five wins and six losses.

“We’ve been going pretty hard for four straight weekends with a lot of tough matchups,” head coach Kelly Stahlhuth said. The Bears traveled to Greencastle, Ind., looking to break a two-game losing streak versus No. 30 DePauw University.

The Bears responded with a convincing 7-2 win. Washington University jumped ahead after doubles thanks to victories from seniors Rebecca Ho and Kaylan Griffith in first doubles and junior Grace Deering and sophomore Lisa Chionis in the second slot. Deering and Chionis’ match was particularly notable, a 9-7 nail-biter against the 22nd ranked pair in Division III.

Wash. U. found the three wins they needed to secure the victory in short order. Sophomore Brigitte Hodge won her match 6-4, 6-2, before Ho won her singles matchup. The clinching fifth win came from junior Kate Lee at number six singles, who secured the victory for the Bears, 6-3, 6-2. The Bears also got singles wins for Griffith and Deering to wrap up the scoring.

Though the final score seems lopsided, Stahlhuth emphasized that DePauw was no pushover. “DePauw doesn’t give up,” Stalhhuth said, pointing out that both teams had struggle through tough conditions, with winds as high as 20 mph.

The next day, the Bears were on the road again, traveling to Belleville, Ill. to take on Coe College. It would prove to be another seemingly routine win for Wash. U. The Bears swept the doubles matchups, including two 8-0 victories from the Deering/Chionis pair and senior Mindy Borovsky and freshman Celeste Woloshyn. In singles, Wash. U. picked up five more wins, for an 8-1 overall victory.

“Coe had some solid players,” Stahlhuth said. “We couldn’t take them lightly.”

With another four victories this weekend, Ho continues her red-hot senior campaign. Ho is 20-2 in singles, ranked fourth in the nation individually and third in doubles with Griffith, and she is fast approaching Wash. U.’s all-time wins record.

“[Ho] is just so focused,” Stahlhuth said of her star player. “She’s going to end strong her senior season. She’s on a mission.”

The two victories this weekend pushed the Bears’ record to 7-6, heading into a brief respite before match play in April. Wash. U., currently ranked ninth in the nation, will travel to Madison, Wis. for the Madison Invite from April 6-7. Stahlhuth said she hopes to take advantage of this period to recover from the Bears’ packed schedule recently. During the team’s recent spring break trip to Claremont, Calif., they had to push through four matches in four days—three of them against top-10 opponents.

“We’re going to rest our bodies and rest our minds somehow,” she said.

Sophomore Konrad Kozlowski hits a backhand in the match against the Rhodes College last year. The sophomore picked up a win with partner junior Jason Haugen against Wabash College Friday.

Men’s tennis

After posting a 3-1 record on their trip to California over spring break, the Washington University men’s tennis team got on the bus to Crawfordsville, Ind. ranked sixth in Division III with an overall record of 6-3.

The Bears’ first matchup of the weekend was against Wabash College Friday. Sophomore Konrad Kozlowski and junior Jason Haugen got the ball rolling in doubles with an 8-5 victory, but it was senior Jeremy Bush and freshman JJ Kroot who set the tone for the Bears, shutting out their opponents 8-0. Sophomore Radha Vishnubhotla and freshman Bernardo Neves rounded out the doubles play, putting the Bears up 3-0.

From that point on, the floodgates had opened, and Wash. U. won all six singles matchups in straight sets on the way to an unblemished 9-0 victory.

The Bears continued their tour of Indiana the next day, traveling to Greencastle to take on No. 35 DePauw. This time, the Bears would have a tougher road to victory. For just the third time this season, they fell behind after doubles play.

Down 1-2, the Bears had to rely on singles play to earn the victory. The singles players came through for Wash. U. Junior Johnny Wu fought out a tough three set victory 7-6, 6-7, 10-6 at first singles, and senior John Carswell picked up a straight set victory in the second slot. Returning to singles play for the first time this season, Bush won his matchup 6-3, 6-1 in sixth flight singles. Neves and Kroot also won singles matches, giving the Bears a 6-3 victory.

Carswell’s win puts him at 93 for his career, edging him ever closer to the 100-win milestone, while Bush’s win puts his career total to 116, tied for 15th all-time in the Wash. U. record books.

The Bears will next play away at Division II Northwest Missouri State University April 1, their eleventh-straight road match, before finally returning home to host Millikin College Thursday, April 6.