The University of Rhode Island women’s tennis team split its two matches this weekend, falling short against New Jersey Institute of Technology before bouncing back with a win over Hofstra University.

The Rams entered the weekend with a perfect 4-0 record. After a canceled match against Quinnipiac University due to weather, Rhody was back in action against NJIT on Saturday for the first time in 13 days. However, they would start their weekend off by getting swept in doubles, dropping all three matches to give NJIT an early 1-0 lead. Third-year Nikki Fernando had a tightly-contested singles match that went three sets. After dropping the first set 7-5, Fernando bounced back and won the second set 7-6 but ultimately came up short, losing the final set 6-4.

“Even though it was the first loss, it’s natural,” Fernando said. “We’re not going to win all of them. If anything, I think it puts things into perspective that there is always room for improvement, and coach always reiterates there’s always a chance for us to get better.”

Third-year Sophie Herrman and first-year Anastasia Pettersson also lost their singles matches. First-year Grace Darcy won her match in straight sets, 6-2 and 6-3. Darcy’s win would end up being the lone point for the Rams as they went on to lose their first match of the year 4-1. Fourth-year Klara Nelander and second-year Blake Rothchild also competed in singles play. But their matches weren’t finished because NJIT had already won the match with four points, and there were weather concerns regarding travel.

“Credit to NJIT,” URI Head Coach Jonas Brobeck said. “They were playing to win and just played a little bit better than us in important moments, and they played the big points on their terms and the right way.”

Rhody looked to get back in the win column on Sunday in their match against Hofstra. Darcy and Pettersson won their doubles match 6-2, while second-year Stephanie Hylton and Nelander won their doubles match 6-4, earning Rhode Island the doubles point.

Darcy and Pettersson also carried the momentum from their doubles victory into singles play. Darcy had another straight set victory, winning the first set 6-0 and the second 6-1. Pettersson lost the first set, but proceeded to win the next two, 6-3 and 6-4.

Nelander was also victorious in her singles match, picking up a two-set win, 6-1 and 6-0. Nelander, Petterson and Darcy’s wins were enough to clinch a 4-0 win for the Rams. Rothchild, Fernando and Neladner’s matches were once again cut short due to weather concerns regarding travel.

“We didn’t flinch,” Brobeck said. “Because it’s important to have to do that, there’s so much adversity in sports, and when those things happen to you, you have to deal with it the right way. Because that’s how you grow and that’s how you get better, and I feel like we did a really good job of that this weekend, and I’m super proud of the girls for doing that.”

After their weekend split, URI is now 5-1 on the season. Rhode Island has another busy weekend ahead of them. They take on Stonehill College on Saturday and Sacred Heart University on Sunday; both matches will be in Newport at the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

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