After losing all of its doubles matches in the previous two contests, the Ball State University women's tennis team swept IPFW in doubles play Wednesday.
Ball State (2-2) defeated IPFW (3-5) 6-1 to end its two match losing streak. Coach Kathy Bull said the Cardinals doubles teams are coming together to give the team a boost.
"We finally played some better doubles which has been our goal," Bull said. "We controlled the court really well and finally showed a little spark down towards the end of all three of our doubles matches."
The doubles teams need to find a personality and be more assertive, Bull said.
"We've mixed up some teams, and I think we've found some good combinations," she said. "Now we can maybe start to settle in and get to know our partners a little bit."
Bull said the Cardinals had been feeling pressure and trying too hard to finish off points in doubles play the previous two matches.
Junior Stephanie Farrar and freshman Polina Askerko defeated Alexa Rang and Sachi Janek 8-5 in No. 3 doubles. Farrar has been a big boost for Ball State in doubles, Bull said.
"She seems to be getting a little bit better every match because she's been out with injury for almost a year," Bull said.
In singles, junior Haly Calderwood got her first win of the season by defeating Janek 6-1, 6-1. Bull said Calderwood needed the win to set her up for the rest of the season.
"It's just been a matter of time," Bull said. "We've been waiting for her to kind of click in. Today she really was all over her opponent. It was a welcome sight from my standpoint."
Getting her first win of the season was a relief, Calderwood said.
"I'll be a lot more confident now," she said. "Even going out there today, I wasn't as confident as I should have been. And now just having that win, it's just such a big boost."
Freshman Sophie Quist was also impressive in singles, Bull said.
"I thought we played very well in one and two singles," Bull said. "Both Calderwood and Quist, I thought played extremely well."
Quist defeated Stacy Lish 6-2, 6-1 in No. 2 singles. Quist joined the Cardinals this season after training in Spain last year.
"She's adapting well to collegiate tennis and being a team member," Bull said. "I was just very impressed with the way she controlled the court today."
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