ANGOLA, Ind.-- The Trine women's tennis team battled Bethel (Ind.) tough, but the Thunder were defeated by the Pilots 5-4 Saturday afternoon in Keith E. Busse/Steel Dynamics Athletic Recreation Center.
Trine started off the day by taking two doubles matches to go up 2-1. Captain Lexi Mack (Temperance, Mich. / Bedford) and Kaitlin Black (Crawfordsville, Ind. / Southmont) earned a convincing 8-2 victory in the no. 2 doubles flight. Kinnsey Pass (Lafayette, Ind. / Jefferson) and Sloan Davis (Olivet, Mich. / Olivet) were able to earn a tough 9-7 victory as the no. 3 pairing to put the Thunder ahead.
Trine's top pairing of Madison Hatkevich (Granger, Ind. / Edwardsburg) and Tarah Brennan (Allegan, Mich. / Allegan) gave the Pilots' top duo a tough battle as the two pairings battled to an 8-8 draw. Bethel was able to secure the point however, as Caroline Boger and Abby VanDiver won the tiebreak 7-3.
Black played particularly well in showing poise and patience to earn the victory in the no. 5 singles court. The junior dispatched her opponent by scores of 6-4, 6-1 to pick up her second-consecutive victory and help the Thunder keep pace during singles play.
Pass fought back after dropping the first set 4-6, winning the second by a 7-5 score to force the tiebreaker. The sophomore prevailed 10-8 to help keep Trine's hopes for a victory alive. Pass has now won a team-high four matches this year and owns a 4-2 overall record.
The match was tied 4-4 with the no. 6 singles flight still locked up in a battle for the team victory. Davis took the first set from her opponent 6-3, but Ashton Taner took the second set and was able to hold off Davis in the tiebreak to secure the victory for Bethel.
The match was the second of the 2015-16 season between the two teams. The Thunder showed marked improvement after an 8-1 loss in the fall. The match dropped Trine's record to 1-5 overall. Bethel improved to 14-2 on the year.
Trine continues non-conference play with a home match against NAIA-foe Concordia (Mich.) Tuesday, Mar. 22 at 4 p.m.
