Saturday, April 1, Smith’s Tennis team ended an eventful season with their final NEWMAC match. While the Pioneers finished with a 8-1 loss to Wellesley College, there have been many highlights this spring.
The season included many exciting matches including last week’s match in which the Pioneers swept Clark University with a 9-0 score. That match’s impressive highlights included: Clara Goshgarian ’25 defeating her opponent with a 6-1 score, Ashley Felex ’23 earned a 6-3 win and Lili Goshgarian ’25, Alexa Monos ’25 and Olivia Monos ’25 all captured 6-0 victories.
The Pioneers dominated the courts against Colby-Sawyer College, Emerson College, Gordon College and Clark University. Also they scored a big victory with a win against cross-valley rival, Mount Holyoke College. In talking with Coach Caitlyn Lawrence about the team’s 6-3 triumph against MHC, she said that this was an exciting match, not only because they are a tough team, but also because it has been over a decade since the Pioneers have beat them in a match. The Pioneers had previously won in a scrimmage against MHC in fall of 2021, but it wasn’t counted towards the season’s record. So this victory was a big win for the team.
When asked about her coaching strategy, Coach Lawrence explains that during matches it is impossible to be with every player during every moment. Since both doubles and singles are going on simultaneously the coaches work with the athletes individually during their practice sessions to prepare for every scenario on the court. Coach Lawrence says “Our team’s biggest strength is that we have a lot of depth. All the way down the line-up we have people who could compete in any position. This allows us to have very effective practices and gives us a lot of confidence on match day.”
The Pioneers ended their season with an overall record of 7-7 overall and 3-5 mark in league play.
