Friday afternoon on Senior Day, Lauren Sadaka's name resounded through the crowd. The senior co-captain was in the middle of her final stellar home performance during Penn's 7-0 win over Columbia.
But the weekend was just beginning for Sadaka, as yesterday she won the clinching match in Penn's 4-3 win over Cornell in Ithaca, N.Y.
It was a fitting send-off for Sadaka, who, along with junior co-captain Ekaterina Kosminskaya, had the duty of shepherding the team through its toughest season in recent memory.
"We were able to tough it up and never give up," interim coach Sara Schiffman said. "We owe a lot of that to Lauren; her senior leadership was great."
Yesterday Sadaka and Emily Wolf suffered their first doubles loss this season. Up 6-5 and serving, the two could not finish off an undefeated season as they lost, 9-7.
The Quakers (3-14, 2-5 Ivy) did not win the doubles point, but they came on strong in singles. Much like Columbia (4-15, 0-7) had to battle against Penn's Senior Day crowd Friday, the Red and Blue dealt with raucous Senior Day fans at Cornell (6-14, 2-5) yesterday.
"We overcame a lot of adversity," Schiffman said.
Sadaka and Wolf made up for their loss in doubles by winning two hotly contested singles matches. Sadaka won a tough three-set match while Wolf played well in the clutch and won both of her sets in tie-breakers.
The Quakers accomplished four firsts against Columbia. They played outside on their home courts, defeated an Ivy League team, did not drop any matches and did not lose any sets - all for the first time this season. Maria Anisimova played the only close match of the day against hard-hitting freshman Nicole Stanziola, winning each set by a break.
"Everyone played well," Schiffman said. "We won every singles and doubles match convincingly."
The two Ivy League victories were a great way for the Quakers to end their season. The team struggled through most of the season, battling inexperience, injuries and inconsistent play while trying to compete in the Ancient Eight.
Sadaka had never experienced this before at Penn; she was a part of three very successful teams, two of which made it to the NCAA tournament. But this year still meant something to the captain.
"I like being captain, and I like to be a role model and set a good example," Sadaka said. "I have always wanted to be captain ever since I was a freshman."
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