Penn women's tennis continues losing streak versus rival Princeton

While most of Penn’s campus was rejoicing over a beautiful spring weekend, Penn women’s tennis headed to Princeton, N.J., with the hopes of doing something they have failed to do since 2008: Beat the Tigers.

Unfortunately for the Quakers, they fared no better in 2016 than they have over the last eight seasons, losing 5-2.

The Red and Blue (7-6, 0-1 Ivy) had a strong opening non-conference season up until this weekend, notching a 7-5 record including a pair of victories against ranked opponents. This Princeton match marked the beginning of the Ivy League season; all of the Red and Blue’s remaining matches will be against Ancient Eight opponents.

The day almost got off to a better start for the Quakers, as the fight for the all-important doubles point came down to just a couple points. After Princeton (9-7, 1-0) took the first doubles match, Kana Daniel and Sonya Latycheva won, 7-5. The third and finals doubles match went to a tiebreaker, but Ria Vaidya and Marta Kowalska lost, 7-1.

In singles play, the Red and Blue hoped to regain the momentum but could only muster a couple wins as Princeton cruised to a 5-2 victory.

The two Penn victories came on the racquets of sophomores Ria Vaidya and Lina Qostal. Vaidya won a third set super-tiebreaker 10-6 at the No. 3 singles position while Qostal won a pair of 7-5 sets to take the win. However, it wasn’t enough as the rest of the Red and Blue lineup lost in straight sets.

The Quakers will look to get back on track at home against Yale on Friday. With only six matches remaining, every match is necessary for the Red and Blue to have a chance at taking the coveted Ancient Eight title. Luckily for Penn, they won’t have to deal with Princeton for the rest of the season. 

However, the chance to snap the eight-year losing streak to the Tigers will have to wait until 2017. 

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