Eamon Coelho ’30
Staff Writer
The Holy Cross women’s tennis team had a successful weekend at the Holy Cross Women’s Invitational, earning victories over Providence and Monmouth at the Sinnott Family Tennis Facility. Strong performances, clutch doubles play, and growing team chemistry helped the Crusaders secure both wins before returning to competition at the Patriot League ITA Masters Qualifier on October 23.
Holy Cross opened the invitational against Providence, establishing an early advantage by securing the doubles point. Freshman Sadie McFadzen and freshman Alexa Clark earned a 7-5 victory at No. 2 doubles, while senior Alison Lynn and junior Mia Romo won a riveting match at No. 3, prevailing 7-6 after an 8-6 tiebreaker.
The Crusaders carried that momentum into singles play, with freshman Patricia Arca dominating at the No. 2 singles with a whopping 8-2 victory, while McFadzen earned an 8-6 win at No. 4. Junior Kiya Martin built on Holy Cross’ strong doubles performance, adding another victory at No. 5.
The team only continued their success against Monmouth, with sophomore Phoebe Devine earning a straight-set victory at No. 1 singles, defeating Pavitra Parikh 6-2, 6-3. Acra collected her second singles win of the weekend, while Clark, Martin, and Lynn also contributed victories. In doubles, Clark and McFadzen won 7-5, and Lynn and Romo secured a 6-4 victory to help the Crusaders claim the doubles point.
Devine expressed the collective triumph of the team after last year’s results saying, “There were 2 great wins for the team because everyone really stepped up individually and played their best tennis. It was super exciting beating 2 teams that we lost to last year so it was a great feeling.”
Romo also emphasized the importance of perseverance and the community mentality of the team saying, “Ali and I were down at the beginning of both matches and managed to make two huge comebacks which was a really great feeling. The team is really close this year and being able to share those big wins with the girls is the best.”
Holy Cross faced another challenge at the Patriot League ITA Masters Qualifier in West Point, NY. In singles, Acra valiantly fought Lehigh’s Alina Shyani to three sets before falling 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. Devine also competed against Navy’s Grace Li, losing 6-0, 6-3. In doubles, Devine and Acra proved formidable opponents to Lehigh’s Maggie Forkner and Shyani, but just narrowly fell 9-7.
Although the qualifier produced different results from the invitational, it offered another opportunity for the team to compete against Patriot League opponents. Together, both events highlighted the strong competitive nature of this year’s women’s college tennis competition, where our Crusaders have demonstrated their resilience, teamwork, and community, promising more than just the two home victories now behind them.
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