Bradley tennis looked to extend their win streak to five on Saturday during a doubleheader. Unfortunately, it did not go as planned.
The Braves traveled west to Cape Girardeau, Missouri, to battle Southeast Missouri State (3-6) and Arkansas State (4-4), dropping both matches to their southern foes.
Their day started at 9 a.m. against SEMO. The Redhawks got their fourth consecutive win against Bradley, 4-0. Three of the six singles matches were abandoned after three consecutive SEMO victories.
Before her singles match was abandoned, junior Kirstin Hailey led 7-6, 3-3. In doubles, the first two matches went to the Redhawks. Sophomores Anna Belogliadova and Alexandra Hildreth were tied at 5-5 before their match ended abruptly.
“We had some opportunities that didn’t quite go our way,” head coach Matt Tyler said. “And in tight matches like that, you just can’t give those up; you’ve got to make sure you’re capitalizing. We just weren’t quite able to do that, so it kind of got away from us.”
This match ended the Braves’ win streak, which Tyler believes isn’t the easiest thing to deal with in college tennis.
“It’s tough, especially because they’re seeing the same things I am, that we’re so close,” Tyler said. “Hopefully, you get the confidence from knowing that your matches are close, but don’t go the opposite direction and say, ‘We just lost two matches.’ [We are] trying to pull the positives out of that as much as possible.”
In the following matchup against Arkansas State, a team coming off a 1-6 loss against Jacksonville State, the Red Wolves won 4-2.
Senior Maria Bezmenova and sophomore Madi Rogers both won their singles matches, and freshman Andra Sirbu was close to victory before her match was abandoned. She led 6-3, 2-6, 5-0.
Bradley was once again winless in the doubles competition. Before their match was abandoned, Bezmenova and sophomore Mariia Pukhina led 5-3.
“We were right there, [we] competed really well,” Tyler said. “It seems like every single weekend, it’s just tight matches, and we just need to get over the hump.”
Even though the Braves lost two games, Tyler still wants the team to use the individual wins as motivation.
“We of course want all our athletes to win every single time,” Tyler said. “But when they see their teammates winning, and when we’re close, I’m hopeful that gives them confidence. Because even though tennis is an individual sport, it is still very much a team effort.”
Bradley tennis moves to 4-8 on the season after their performances in Missouri. Next, the Braves have a Sunday match against Ball State and a Wednesday match against Lindenwood.
Tyler knows that this team can win, so he wants to make sure their heads are in it when they take the court next.
“I think a lot of it for us right now is mental, and just making sure that we’re staying focused,” Tyler said. “[We’re] obviously wanting to make sure our practices are high-quality and we’re getting everything we need from a physical standpoint, but it’s more mental, which sometimes is a tougher thing to work on.”
“But having that focus and having the energy to capitalize on big moments is going to be critical,” Tyler added.
With 12 matches before the Missouri Valley Conference Championship, the Braves have some good chances to improve their record this year.
