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Note: In the event of inclement weather on Saturday, the match may be moved to Granite Run Tennis Club. Directions to Granite Run Tennis Club can be found by clicking here. For the latest information on Saturday's match, make sure to visit GBCAthletics.com. |
WILMINGTON, Del. – When Goldey-Beacom College begins a three-match homestand on Saturday against Queens College at Archmere Academy, it will feature a number of matches involving players who are ranked in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Division II East rankings, which were released on March 21.
In addition, the match will feature two of the top-ranked teams in the East region. Queens, which is off to a perfect 12-0 record, is the top-ranked team in the region while Goldey-Beacom enters Saturday's match ranked fifth in the East.
“The girls are very excited and are looking forward to playing against Queens on Saturday,” Coach
Joe Kissel said. “Goldey-Beacom has come a long way in tennis over the last six years, but we still have some work to do to catch up to Queens.
“Saturday's match will give us an indication of how close we are or just how far we still have to go,” Kissel added. “There should be some good tennis on display.”
Now 8-5 overall and 6-2 in the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference, the Lightning have been idle since March 18 when Goldey-Beacom earned a 9-0 victory over Shippensburg. Goldey-Beacom was slated to play Millersville on March 24, but inclement weather forced the match to be postponed. A make-up date has not been determined.
Ranked second in the ITA East region in singles, freshman
Stephanie Puentes (Bogota, Columbia) has been the Lightning's leader this year at number one singles with an 11-2 record, including an 8-2 mark in her last 10 matches. She has also posted a 7-6 record at number one doubles for the Lightning and has played with freshman
Anastasia Melnikova (Vladivostok, Russia) at that spot in the last five matches.
Melnikova and Puentes are the fourth-ranked doubles team in the latest ITA East region rankings.
Meanwhile, junior
Blanca Sancho (Zaragoza, Spain) has also played well at number two singles this year and has a 9-4 record, including a two-match win streak. Ranked 16th in singles in the East region, she has won seven of her last 10 matches and is 6-2 against CACC opponents.
Queens College, which will be playing its first match since October on Saturday, features four players who are mentioned in the latest East region singles rankings.
The fifth-ranked singles player in the ITA East region, junior
Erika Goldsmith (Edison H.S./Edison, N.J.) is the Knights' leader with a 12-1 overall singles record, including a perfect 5-0 record at number one singles. Meanwhile, she is 15-0 at doubles, including an 11-0 mark at number one doubles, and has teamed up with freshman
Francesca Fanchin (LaGuardia H.S./New York, N.Y.) to become the top-ranked doubles team in the region.
Fanchin is also listed among the region's top singles players and is ranked 12th after posting an 11-1 record, including a 10-0 mark in dual meets. She has played primarily at the number three and four positions this season.
Meanwhile, sophomore
Anna Rodionova (Orenburg, Russia) enters Saturday's match as the 11th-ranked singles player in the region and has a 12-3 record this season, which includes a 4-1 mark at the number two spot and a 5-1 mark at the number three position. She is also a member of the seventh-ranked doubles team in the region with freshman
Phoebe Chiem (Duluth H.S./Duluth, Ga). The duo has posted a perfect 5-0 record at number two doubles this year.
Chiem is ranked 13th in the region in singles and has a 12-1 record, including a 10-0 dual meet mark.
The Knights posted an 8-1 victory over Goldey-Beacom in last year's meeting. Junior
Melanie Bonomo (Maracay, Venezuela) earned the Lightning's lone victory in the match at number four singles with a 6-4, 6-3 decision over senior
Taylor Barber (Bountiful H.S./Salt Lake City, Utah).
After Friday's match, the Lightning will host New York Institute of Technology on Friday, April 6 at 2 p.m. at Archmere Academy. Goldey-Beacom will finish the regular season on Sunday, April 15 against Molloy at 12 p.m.
