The Hillsdale College women's tennis team opened the season with a narrow loss on the road to a tough Saginaw Valley State team in a 4-3 thriller on Sunday.
The undefeated Cardinals came into the match having already knocked off G-MAC contender Walsh the previous weekend, but Hillsdale nearly pulled the upset in hostile territory, coming up just short in two three-set matches that could have swung the result in their favor.
The Chargers started the day strong by sweeping all three doubles matches to take the doubles point. Senior Sarah Hackman and junior Melanie Zampardo took a 6-3 decision at No. 1 doubles to lead Hillsdale, senior Ellie Chawner and sophomore Libby McGivern won a 6-3 match at No. 2 doubles as well, and senior Canela Luna and freshman Megan Hackman picked up a 6-4 victory at No. 3 doubles to give Hillsdale an early edge.
In singles play, the Chargers got an impressive 7-5, 6-3 win from McGivern at the No. 3 spot, and a dominant 6-1, 6-0 win from Luna at No. 4 singles to move within one point of clinching the match, but the last point Hillsdale needed proved elusive.
Both Hackman sisters put up tough and gritty fights at No. 1 and No. 6 singles, pushing their Cardinals opponents to three sets and then deep into the third set, but both came up just short in the end in narrow defeats.
Senior Sarah Hackman took a hard-fought 6-1, 3-6, 6-4 loss at No. 1 singles for the Chargers, and freshman Megan Hackman also battled to the end in a 6-3, 3-6, 4-6 defeat at No. 6 singles.
While Hillsdale just missed out on an early-season victory, there's still plenty of positive takeaways for the Chargers moving forward, including impressive early chemistry in their doubles pairings and a willingness to fight to the end against tough opponents.
Hillsdale next travels to Allendale, Michigan for one of the marquee events of the fall in NCAA DII women's tennis, the ITA Midwest Regional hosted by Grand Valley State University. All the top players in the region at the NCAA DII level will be at the event to compete for singles and doubles crowns, and the Chargers will look for a solid showing to help build momentum heading into the winter break.
Photo by Anthony Lupi