Data Dive: Numbers behind Syracuse tennis’ worst season since 2014
In early nonconference play, it seemed Syracuse tennis turned a corner. But against robust ACC foes, its record tumbled. Charlie Hynes | Staff Photographer
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Emma Scaldalai had her back against the wall. Her opponent, Wake Forest’s Kady Tannenbaum, was serving match point in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament. Syracuse’s season rested on the point.
After Tannenbaum tossed the ball softly above her head, she swiftly smashed it across the net.
The serve was like department store underwear — it was unreturnable. The ball hit the inside frame of Scaldalai’s racket and rolled weakly to the net as she hung her head in disbelief.
With Scaldalai’s mishit, Syracuse’s (7-13, 3-9 ACC) 2026 season was over after exiting the ACC Tournament in the second round with a 4-1 loss to the Demon Deacons.
Here are the stats that contributed to Syracuse’s worst record in over a decade:
.206 winning percentage in conference doubles play
Through the first seven games of the season, the Orange posted a 5-2 doubles record. It continued into ACC play.
When asked about how Syracuse had maintained such success, head coach Younes Limam didn’t want to be too optimistic.
“In the past, we’ve always played some extremely good teams,” Limam said. “I think we shouldn’t forget that.”
Limam was right. In 12 ACC games this season, Syracuse only won the doubles point twice and posted an abysmal .206 winning percentage.
The Orange didn’t post an above .500 winning percentage in any of the three doubles positions, and their pairs struggled to find consistent success.
2-6 No. 1 doubles conference record
During nonconference play, Nelly Knezkova and Anastasia Sysoeva were one of the best doubles pairs in the nation. The duo dominated Cornell and Boston University and ranked as high as No. 15, earning ACC Doubles Pair of the Week during the first week of the season.
But when conference play arrived, Limam’s comment on the quality of SU’s opponents rang true again. The Orange’s No. 1 pair wasn’t up to the challenge.
The two only won two ACC matches together, quickly falling out of the top 25. Knezkova missed two key matches against Stanford and Cal, and the duo struggled to find rhythm overall.
With the end of the season looming, Limam broke up the pair. However, nothing changed.
In the end, Knezkova and Sysoeva only played in eight conference matches together and only beat two opponents: Boston College and Georgia Tech.
Monika Wojcik’s .375 winning percentage over the last month of play
Until conference play, Monika Wojcik seemed to be the glue holding Syracuse together. The sophomore played primarily in the No. 3 and No. 4 position in nonconference matches. She only dropped five sets through seven contests, amassing a 5-2 record.
Early in the ACC slate, she kept up her momentum, triumphing over BC and SMU.
However, it was all downhill from there for the Delray Beach, Florida, native. Over the last month of the season, she only won 37.5% of her matches.
Ilyan Sarech | Design Editor
As Syracuse’s doubles troubles persisted, it found itself needing to win four of the six singles matches. With inconsistency plaguing Sysoeva in the No. 1 position and fluctuation in the No. 5 spot, Wojcik increasingly adopted more responsibility.
In Syracuse’s 4-2 upset loss to Florida State on April 5, Wojcik lost after an uncompetitive second set in a match that could’ve turned the tide for the Orange. Her struggles across the season’s final month were an important underlying metric that contributed to SU’s inability to win close matches.
.056 singles winning percentage against ranked opponents
In the final Intercollegiate Tennis Association singles poll, the ACC had 37 players in the top 125 nationwide. Not one played for Syracuse.
Throughout the season, the Orange didn’t have a single player rank in the top 125. However, they played 19 matches against ranked opponents. In the first two games of conference play alone, SU played seven ranked singles players. It lost both matches 4-0.
Across all ranked contests, Syracuse posted an abysmal .056 winning percentage, losing 18-of-19 matches. The lone win came against Cal, when Scaldalai defeated No. 90 Naomi Xu.
The Orange even struggled against ranked opponents on teams below them in the standings. Against Florida State, Sysoeva was trailing No. 94 Eva Shaw before the match went unfinished.
Despite her excellence in nonconference matches, Sysoeva struggled in the top spot, going 1-7 in conference matchups. Serafima Shastova wasn’t much better at No. 1, posting a 4-4 record.
The ACC is an unforgiving landscape for a team lacking consistency and depth, something that became clear quickly in conference play for Syracuse.
