Tennis

WAUWATOSA, Wis. – Earlier this week, the 2013 Mount Mary University tennis team already etched its name in the record books as the winningest team in school history. It added a second feat Thursday in a 6-3 victory over rival Alverno, becoming the first tennis team in Mount Mary history to post a winning season record.

"I couldn't be prouder of this team," head coach Tom Troast said. "Just three years ago, we went 0-11 and really didn't come close to winning a match. Now, not only are we competitive, we are beating teams we have historically struggled against. I am just so pleased at how this year turned out."

Thursday marked the culmination of the collegiate tennis careers of four seniors as Katie Wolk (Oshkosh, Wis.), Briana Lock (Milwaukee, Wis.), Kat Reynoso (Brookfield, Wis.) and season newcomer Emily Barker (Oconomowoc, Wis.) all polished off their careers with an exciting victory.

"While our underclassmen have been solid all season long, we wouldn't have been able to experience a season like this without our seniors," Troast said. "They set the tone with their dedication to the sport, and are truly the reason Mount Mary tennis is where it is today."

Knowing what was on the line, Mount Mary opened doubles competition with a bit of nerves and gave up a handful of tight sets to the Inferno. However, once settled in, the No.2 doubles tandem of Wolk and freshman Ana Mercado (Grafton, Wis.) and the No. 3 tandem of sophomore Brooke Slamka (Racine, Wis.) and Lock both picked up 8-4 decisions to take a 2-1 lead into singles play.

Alverno cruised through its No. 1 and No. 4 matchups to take an early lead in the team points, 3-2, but Mercado responded with her own 6-2, 6-0 victory at No. 2 singles to lock the match at 3-3.

The final three matches were incredibly played by both teams—two of which went into tiebreakers. At No. 6 singles, Reynoso took the first set 6-3 before dropping the next one 6-1 to enter a first-to-10 point tiebreaker. With two match points up 9-7 in the deciding frame, Reynoso gave up three straight points to then face match point. However, by attacking the Alverno service, the crafty senior—who is no stranger to tiebreakers—took control of the final rallies to carve out a 12-10 win.

With just one team point needed to clinch the match, Barker overcame a 5-4 first-set deficit to win the final three games, 7-5. Nearly completing the same feat in the second set, Barker won two of the last three games to lock the set at 6-6, entering into MMU's second tiebreak of the night. Jumping out to a quick 2-0 lead, Barker used her athleticism and patience to knock home a 7-3 deciding tiebreak, handing Mount Mary its sixth win of the year.

"It really came down to those tiebreak matches," Troast said. "Kat looked dead in the water after her second set, but really came back focused to take that tiebreak. And Emily—to overcome two 5-4 deficits to win her match in two sets has shown how far she's come as a tennis player this season."

Fittingly, Mount Mary's final match of the night came down to Wolk and her Inferno foe, who played the most evenly matched draw of the night. With rallies consistently in the 20-contact range—one in particular went 43 passes over the net—Wolk eked out a 7-5 victory in the first set and wore down Alverno's Damanique Drake en route to a 6-2 second set win.

Wolk, the senior captain, truly showed her leadership on the courts this season, winning six of her last seven singles and seven of her last eight doubles matches to close out the year.

"Katie really was terrific this year," Troast said. "After dropping a few tough singles matches earlier in the season, she really became our rock. We counted on her to get that match-securing victory as the season drew on, and she stepped up to the occasion like a true senior leader should."

Mount Mary, with a 6-5 overall record, is now technically eligible for an at-large NCAA postseason bid. However, the Blue Angels must wait for the call until the spring-based women's Division III season concludes, which will be in early May 2014. Last season, fellow Association of Division III Independents institution California-Santa Cruz received an at-large bid with an overall record of 10-7.