KISSIMMEE, Fla. – Senior Aileen BeVard unlocked another career milestone as the Ursinus College women's tennis team opened its spring trip with an 8-1 loss to Otterbein in sunny Florida.
BeVard became the second player in program history to reach 40 singles wins with a 6-3, 6-0 rout of Makayla Sutter on the number two court. She joins BreAnna Bashaw '16 as the only Bears to attain that benchmark.
Despite the lopsided final result, Ursinus lost two singles matches in third-set tiebreakers in addition to narrow decisions on the top two doubles courts. BeVard and sophomore Caitlyn Sorelle fell by an 8-6 final to Sutter and Sydney Bergman at first doubles, while seniors Ashley Nguyen and Ariel Danziger lost 8-5 at number two.
Sorelle battled Bergman to the wire at number one singles, recovering from a first-set loss to outlast Bergman, 8-6, in a thrilling second-set tiebreaker. Bergman, however, took the third-set breaker, 10-5, for a hard-fought win.
Nguyen captured a 7-5 decision in a first-set tiebreaker with Sophie Allen, but ultimately came up just short in a 6-7 (5), 6-4, 1-0 (10-5) marathon.
Ursinus struggled at the back end of the lineup, winning just five games combined in fourth through sixth singles and third doubles.
The Bears return to the courts with a match against Division II Saint Anselm at 8 a.m. Tuesday.