TACOMA, Wash. -- The Lewis & Clark Pioneers won all but No. 2 singles and missed out on the top doubles spot in a 7-2 victory over the Puget Sound Loggers on Saturday.
Maca Vives and Rachael Rice took the No. 2 doubles match and No. 3 and 1 singles, respectively. Natalie Kowal, Kate Stratton and Arielle Bloom won the bottom three singles pairings.
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Key Moments
Lewis & Clark (1-0) took two of the doubles matches to build a 2-1 lead in the match. Rice and Vives defeated Marissa Perez and Zoe Love 8-5, while Stratton and Bloom defeated Ainsley Nelson and Tatyana Cox, 8-4. Stratton and Bloom were competing at the collegiate level for the first time.
Both Kowal and Stratton kept the most distance between them and their opponents in singles. Kowal won the No. 4 pairing over Perez, 6-1, 6-2. Stratton beat Laura Schneidman by the same numbers in fifth position.
"We were just so appreciative of the opportunity to compete again," Pios head coach Jimmy Chau said. "The decision to not have any preseason matches definitely showed in our play, but I am also happy about how we progressed from the beginning to end of the match. For the most part, we did a great job closing out sets and thoroughly enjoyed competing again with our teammates."
Deeper Look
- Rice, who went 1-2 in top singles matches during the shortened 2020 season, won her first of this season at No. 1 with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Lia Van Steeter
- Bloom won her race to 10 against Cox for a 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 10-8 victory at No. 6
- Kowal and Madelyn Landerfelt lost 8-4 in the top doubles spot against Van Steeterr and Machida, with Landerfelt falling in No. 2 singles to Machida, 6-1, 6-3
- It was the first time Kowal and Landerfelt had paired in doubles since 2018-19 and only the second time overall
- The Loggers fall to 0-2 on the season
Looking Ahead
Lewis & Clark plays back-to-back matches against Pacific next weekend.
