By Neal Johnson
The Warhawks women’s tennis team led, by freshman Megan Humphreys completed a successful weekend at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Midwest Regional in Saint Peter, Minn., Sunday.
As a team, the ‘Hawks had success from several different players on the team.
“I went into this weekend knowing our team could do some damage, but I definitely didn’t realize how much success we could have,” senior Alexandra Bayliss said.
“Having all five Whitewater players that were in the ITA draw make it to the round of 16 was a big accomplishment by itself.”
On a record-setting Friday, all five of the ‘Hawks singles players advanced to the round of 16.
Senior Jackie Vitale was impressed overall by her team’s performance this weekend.
“This tournament showed how strong and deep our team is,” Vitale said. “Three out of the four semi-finalists were Whitewater players. That is a big accomplishment.”
Their success transitioned over to Saturday where three of the five ‘Hawks players advanced on to the semifinals.
Bayliss started Saturday with a win in the round of 16 against Sidney Dirks of Gustavus by a score of 6-0, 6-1.
She followed that match with a quarterfinals come-from-behind victory against Abigail Pellett of Carroll, 5-7, 6-0, 6-2.
Vitale opened her day with a thrilling three-set victory against Katie Gillman of Eau Claire, 6-3, 5-7, 7-5.
In her quarterfinal match, she defeated Shelby Henderson of St. Thomas, 7-5, 6-4.
“Individually, I fought until the end,” Vitale said. “We all had to face some tough opponents and gave it our all.”
On the other half of the draw, Megan Humphreys won both of her matches with ease.
In the round of 16, she defeated Lisa Hall of St. Olaf, 6-4, 6-1
Then she posted her quarterfinals victory against Victoria Bravo of St. Catherine’s, 7-5, 6-0.
“Jackie, Megan, and I all made it to the semifinals, so three out of the four girls that got that far were from Whitewater, which is pretty incredible,” Bayliss said. “Jackie and Megan both played phenomenal this weekend. I’m so lucky to have such talented teammates to practice with every day. This weekend showed me that our team is going to be tough to beat this year.”
On Sunday, Humphreys battled to a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Anne Lombardi of Carleton.
In the other semi-final match, Bayliss fought for a hard-earned victory against teammate Jackie Vitale, 3-6, 6-2, 6-0.
Then, in the all-Whitewater final, Humphreys defeated Bayliss 6-3, 6-1 to win the title.
“Our team played really well. It’s always tough playing a teammate, but the fact that we had an all-Whitewater final and three out of the four semi finals from Whitewater was amazing,” Humphreys said.
She became the second ‘Hawks player to win the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Midwest Regional title joining former ‘Hawk Kalla Schaefer.
“Megan’s performance this weekend was outstanding,” Vitale said.
As a result of winning the title, Humphreys automatically receives All-American honors.
In addition to the All-American status, she qualified to compete in the Small College Championships Oct. 10 through Oct. 13 in Fort Meyers, Fla.
Barnes was happy of the weekend results.
“Of the five players that played in the ITA, and the rest of the players played in a separate tournament, we definitely got some extra experience,” Barnes said.
“Although our team did better than ever, we can’t look past our upcoming conference tournament, LaCrosse and Eau Claire had good tournaments as well.”
The ‘Hawks host UW-Oshkosh on Wednesday, Sept. 25.
