ANNAPOLIS, Md. – In a matchup that featured long-tenured coaches on both sides, the Navy women's tennis team fell by a 4-1 score to Long Beach State on Friday afternoon at the Tose Family Tennis Center.
Under 28th-year head coach Jenny Hilt-Costello in her final season, the Beach moved to 6-2 on the season with Friday's win, while the Midshipmen and head coach
Keith Puryear, in his 35th year of college tennis, shifted to 7-8 overall this spring.
After LBSU opened doubles action with Cecilia Costa and Johanna Hiesmair pulling out a 6-1 victory over the top Navy pairing of senior
Kate Lee and sophomore
Julia Lee, the Mids brought it even when sophomore
Olivia Fermo and freshman
Grace Li posted a 6-2 win against Daisy Carpenter and Pamela Badillo on the third court. Coming down to No. 2 doubles, Diana De Simone and Thea Jagare edged out sophomore
Manci Pal and rookie
Molly Bellia in a tiebreaker, 7-6 (7-5).
Heading into singles play, LBSU continued to build its lead when Daria Malaescu notched a 6-3, 6-4 victory against
Kate Lee on the fourth court, but Pal kept Navy in the fight with a 7-5, 6-1 win over Hiesmair in the No. 5 match.
Jagare put the Beach on the verge of victory when she knocked off senior
Sylvia Eklund in the third flight, while Costa clinched it in the No. 2 spot by beating Bellia, 6-2, 7-5.
Coach Keith Puryear Comments
"Long Beach is a good team, well coached and could contend for their conference championship this year. We're never truly satisfied with a loss, of course, but we are learning with each match and each experience. We feel we're playing good ball and how we handle some of the small moments in some of our matches is going to make a difference. Looking forward to competing again tomorrow. Both Georgetown and Morgan State are very talented teams, so we'll need to be ready to compete."
Game Notes
• Navy is now 0-1 in the all-time series with Long Beach State.
• Pal has claimed her last two singles matches.
• Fermo and Li's win marked the first time the two Mids had played doubles together.
Up Next
Navy will host a doubleheader on Saturday, facing Georgetown at 10 a.m. and Morgan State at 2 p.m.
