The WSU tennis squad was dominant on their home court this weekend at the Cougar Classic as they took four of the six championship trophies up for grabs.
The Cougars won three of four singles flights and one of two doubles. They were represented in all six-championship matches, and in some cases, Head Coach Lisa Hart got to cheer for both sides of the net.
“Our girls are playing good tennis right now,” Hart said. “We’re really excited about the new players and how they’re mixing in with the old players. Team chemistry is as good as I’ve ever seen it.”
In singles play, junior Liudmila Vasilieva beat fellow Cougar senior Elisabeth Fournier 6-4, 6-1 in the first flight while freshman and Moscow, Russia, native Elizaveta Luzina beat junior Andjela Kankaras in the second flight of another Coug on Coug showdown 6-3, 6-1.
Flight three featured another Cougar win as junior Ksenia Googe handily beat Sandy Vo of Boise State, 6-0, 6-1. WSU almost swept all four singles flights, but came up short as Anastasia Romantsova – another freshman from Moscow – lost in three sets to Idaho’s Alejandra Lozano, 5-7, 6-2, 6-3.
“We dominated the singles. Overall, it was a good weekend for our players,” Hart said. “Particularly Luda (Vasilieva) and Elizaveta (Luzina). Luda came back a month early this summer to work on her game and worked extremely hard. It was nice to see that work be reflected in both her singles and doubles play. Elizaveta has improved so much this fall and particularly has come a long way in the past month.”
In doubles play, the Cougars got three duos to the two championship matches. The combination of Vasilieva and Luzina beat fellow Cougars Fournier and Romantsova in a close 8-6 match. Kankaras and freshman Charlotte Koning lost their match 8-3 to a Boise State tandem in flight one.
The Cougars next and final competition for the individual fall season schedule will be at the ITA Regional Tournament in Stanford, Calif., from Oct. 21-25.
“It can be difficult to stay focused with so much time to practice. But they’re so excited about regionals and the great competition they’ll see there, that they’re all focused on getting a lot done before that tournament,” Hart said. “Each player has different things they need to work on. Everyone has things they need to work on individually in the next month to get ready for regionals.”
