Syracuse ends 3-game skid, beats Boston University 5-2
After falling to UMass Saturday, Syracuse tennis defeated Boston University 4-2 to end its three-game losing skid Sunday. Peter Radosh | Asst. Copy Editor
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For the second day in a row, Syracuse led 3-1 late in singles play.
Despite the Orange needing just one match victory to seal their win, the atmosphere in Drumlins was tense. After all, just 24 hours ago, Syracuse had held the same lead before suffering an upset defeat to UMass.
As it turns out, 24 hours was all that SU needed to flip its fortune. Syracuse (3-3, Atlantic Coast) ended its three-game losing streak with an emphatic 5-2 win over Boston University (3-3, Patriot). Syracuse found some desperately-needed momentum early on, winning the doubles point and dominating singles to get out to a massive early lead that ended up being too much for the Terriers to overcome.
“Yesterday was a tough day for us,” Syracuse head coach Younes Limam said. “But it was good to see them come back with a lot of energy.”
After sitting out Saturday’s loss to UMass, senior Anastasia Sysoeva came back in force. But early on, SU’s top doubles pairing of Sysoeva and Nelly Knezkova found themselves down 4-2 quickly to the Terriers’ Nancy Liu and Vasilisa Borisova.
About to go down by three, Sysoeva and Knezkova stole a point and slowly tilted the match back in their favor to seal the win.
“I think that being comfortable with my partner is huge in matches like that,” Knezkova said. “It enabled us to step up when our backs were against the wall.”
By the time Sysoeva and Knezkova had wrapped up their matches, Syracuse’s No. 3 pairing of Constance Levivier and Leena Bennetto had already iced up their match against Emily Zhao and Madison Liu by a 6-3 margin.
Despite an apparent injury to senior Serafima Shastova during Saturday’s match, the senior was back in action for the Orange Sunday, jumping out to an early 5-1 lead with Monika Wojcik in doubles play. However, the pair allowed Blanka DeMicheli and Rhea Rai of the Terriers to claw back into the match, and they ended up in a stalemate with the doubles point already won.
Fresh off the doubles point win, Sysoeva continued her dominance in singles. She didn’t let Ellie Gyuro anywhere near the scoreboard, shutting her out to win in straight sets (6-0, 6-0).
“She was pretty much flawless today,” Limam said of Sysoeva.
Sysoeva wasn’t the only Orange player who held on tightly to their newfound momentum. Following her lengthy, match-sealing singles loss against UMass, Bennetto bounced back and defeated Emily Zhao in straight sets (6-4, 6-2).
“Yesterday was a tough day for her,” Limam said. “It was really good to see her be decisive on her points and to have a clear vision for the match.”
The momentum faltered a little bit for Wojcik who fell in two sets (6-4, 6-4) to Borisova. It was just the second loss of the season for Wojcik.
Knezkova’s match was the deciding point for the Orange, as she also dispatched Liu in straight sets (6-2, 7-5). The junior was one of SU’s most successful players over the weekend, coming out victorious in three of the four matches she played in against UMass and Boston University.
BU was a massively important contest for Syracuse, and it was one it passed with flying colors. With only one match remaining before the gauntlet of conference play, it has one more chance to tune up before opening its brutal ACC slate against North Carolina.
“We played with a lot of energy today,” Limam said. “That was hugely important in getting the momentum back after yesterday.”
