SCF Tennis vs St. Catherine Recap

The SCF tennis team (5-5, 3-4 Region 8) wrapped up their non-conference slate at home as they defeated NCAA DIII St. Catherine (5-4, 2-3 MIAC) 9-0. This was the Manatees' first shutout of the season and the first since March 19, 2017 (vs Florida State College-Jacksonville).

"It was a good match for the girls, which was nice," said head coach Chloe Murphy. "We really focused on getting the job done."

Beginning in doubles, the team of sophomore Sara Jamal and freshman Sara Ramirez-Goncalves (4-5) quickly defeated juniors Bri Dorr and Alisha Wiedmeier 8-1 at #1 doubles. The team of sophomore Diarra Thomas and freshman Britain Botsford (5-4) would follow with an 8-4 win over freshman Reilee Schepper and sophomore Ella Graham at #3 doubles before the duo of freshman Zeba Jamal and sophomore Camille Portalier (4-5) defeated juniors Aubrey Eckstrom and Maddy Knoll 8-6, thus SCF claimed all three doubles points.

Meanwhile for an exhibition doubles match, the team of freshman Mackenzie Vraspir and sophomore Laura Illanes-Rodriguez would fall 8-1 to seniors Ruth Rike and Leah Obert.

Heading into singles, Ramirez-Goncalves (8-0) pulled away with a quick 6-0, 6-1 win over Eckstrom at #3 singles before Botsford (6-4) sealed the deal for the Manatees with a 6-0, 6-1 win over Obert at #5 singles.

"I did what I had to do in my singles match and play smart," said Ramirez-Goncalves. "It really showed on my part on the scoreboard."

In the final four matches, Zeba Jamal (3-6) would win with a 6-0 pair decision over Dorr at #1 singles while her sister, Sara (5-5), followed with 6-1 pair decision over Wiedmeier at #2 singles. Illanes-Rodriguez (5-4) would then pull away at #6 singles with a 6-3, 6-0 win over Graham before Portalier (4-6) pulled away with a 6-4 pair decision over Knoll for the final match.

Thomas and Vraspir also played in one set exhibition matches with Thomas defeating Schepper 8-0, while Vraspir fell 8-0 against Rike.

Up Next:
The Manatees open with their final home match of the season in conference play as they welcome Hillsborough Community College (7-1, 6-1 Region 8) to the SCF Tennis Complex. The final home matchup will be listed as senior day for Laura Illanes-Rodriguez, Sara Jamal, Camille Portalier, Diarra Thomas.