It could have been a few degrees warmer, but the weather did not deter the Texas A&M women’s tennis team from handing the visiting Wake Forest University Demon Deacons their 16th loss of the season. With the 4-3 win, the No. 29 Aggies improve to 11-7 on the season and have a week to prepare for a Friday doubleheader with Sam Houston State University and Texas Tech University at the A&M Tennis Center.
A&M Head Coach Bobby Kleinecke said the elements played a factor in how his team performed on Saturday.
“It was extremely windy today,” Kleinecke said. “The wind did not allow you to play your normal game. We didn’t play great tennis, but we did what we needed to do to win.”
The Aggies firmly took care of business at all three doubles spots, led again by the No. 38 doubles pairing of juniors Jessica Roland and Roberta Spencer. It has been an impressive stretch for Roland and Spencer, as they manufactured their 11th consecutive victory at No. 1 doubles. Freshmen Seva Iwinski and Nicki Mecham then picked up their own doubles win, giving A&M a 1-0 cushion going into singles play.
Ashley Hedberg, the Aggies’ lone senior, said her team had been cautioned before the match to take Wake Forest seriously. The Demon Deacons had failed to register more than one win before coming to College Station, which was a point of caution for the Aggies.
“We were probably more focused today,” Hedberg said. “They are a difficult team. Coach Kleinecke had warned us about taking this team lightly and he wanted us to come out ready to play.”
Roland was ready to play. She was able to capture the momentum from her doubles play to set the tone for the Aggies in singles play. Roland made quick work of the Demon Deacon’s best player, sophomore Karin Coetzee at No. 1 singles.
Roland has won 12 of her last 14 matches, and is in the midst of a five match-winning streak. WFU Head Coach Brian Fleishman said he could tell that the Aggies looked focused, ignited by strong doubles play and good coaching.
“Bobby (Kleinecke) and (Assistant Coach) Alison (Ojeda) are great coaches and their players fight and compete for them everyday, and today was no different,” Fleishman said.
However, the match was not clinched for the Aggies until sophomore Lauren Walker dispatched WFU junior Elizabeth Proctor in three tight sets. Kleinecke said it was tough to tell which way the match would swing until Walker solidified the A&M victory, sending WFU to its 14th consecutive loss.
“Thank goodness Lauren (Walker) came through with the win today,” Kleinecke said. “This kind of a win is an equalizer, especially since we came into today’s match lacking a bit of confidence.”
The Aggies will have a bit of down time before seeing their next action this coming Friday. A&M will have ample time to prepare for Sam Houston State and Texas Tech, which is a welcoming chance to do a bit of mild tweaking in a focused practice setting.
“We’ve got to get back into our routine,” Kleinecke said. “We’re going to work on a game plan and the big thing is we are going to finally have the practice time to do so.”
The Aggies square off against Sam Houston at noon this Friday at the A&M Tennis Center. The team turns around to face the Red Raiders at 6 p.m. that evening.