Bucknell Women's Tennis Swings Through New York for Three Matches in Three Days

March 4, 2010

LEWISBURG, Pa. – Bucknell women's tennis hits the road for a trio of matches this weekend. The Bison (0-4) will open play on Friday with Niagara in Tonawanda, N.Y. Play continues Saturday at St. Bonaventure with the Bison facing off against the Bonnies at 10 a.m. and Sunday at Syracuse for an 11 a.m. showdown with the Orange.

ABOUT THE BISON

Bucknell took its second consecutive 4-3 loss last weekend, falling to a tough Penn in Philadelphia. The Bison continued to get solid doubles play from Lauren Lucido (Woodstock, Md./St. Paul's School for Girls) and Tania Varela (Quito, Ecuador) at No. 1 and Daria Tuzhikova (Minsk, Belarus/Gymnasium No. 7) and Dumitrita Iepuras (Chisinau, Moldova/Germantown Friends School) at No. 3. The two teams helped claim Bucknell's first point of the afternoon. Lucido and Varela then finished with wins at the first two singles positions to round out the scoring.
Lucido went undefeated in singles at 3-0 in February and finished the month 2-1 in doubles. Her strong play gives the junior a career combined record of 99-45 (.688). One more victory will make Lucido the ninth Bison in program history to reach 100 wins.
Lucido's success also moved her up the record list in doubles victories. She is now sixth all-time at Bucknell, one spot behind her doubles partner Varela.
Iepuras and Tuzhikova have seen their own success at doubles this spring. The tandem has won each of its last three matches and is 4-0 in dual match action.
Varela recently took the team lead in singles wins this season. With a pair of victories at the No. 2 position against Duquesne and Penn, the senior has a record of 14-6. Right behind her are Lucido at 12-5 and Iepuras at 11-8.
Lucido recently switched to the No. 1 singles position and has earned wins in her two matches in that role. She is 5-1 in her career at first singles, including 2-0 this season and 3-0 as a freshman.
Lucido and Varela have also been the Bison's go-to doubles team at the No. 1 position. The duo is 2-2 this season, but 15-9 together at first doubles in their careers.
Bucknell is still looking for the first win of the season to show off its hard work and progress. The Bison have faced some tough opponents in its dual matches this spring and only have a 0-4 record to show for it. The last time a Bucknell squad started the season at least 0-4 was in 1987-88. The Bison of 18 years ago earned a 5-4 victory over Lock Haven in their last fall match, closing out the first half of their season 1-9. They went on to finish in the spring with a 3-12 overall record.

ABOUT NIAGARA

Niagara is off to a rocky start in 2010. The Purple Eagles are still looking for their first win of the season, having started 0-7. Niagara's closest matches have come against Mercyhurst (5-2) and Southeast Missouri State (4-3), but the team's five other matches have ended in 7-0 sweeps.
The success is a departure from where the Purple Eagles finished the 2009 campaign. Niagara won the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference regular-season title, tallying a record of 11-12 and 9-0 in the MAAC. It was upset by No. 2 Fairfield in the year-ending MAAC Tournament.
Niagara had three all-conference selections a year ago in Alyssa Lucas, Raquel Solis and Victoria Tiso. Only Lucas and Solis return in 2010.
Bucknell is 2-0 all-time against Niagara. The two teams last met in Hilton Head, S.C., in 2007 with the Bison winning 5-2. Carlin Calcaterra (Hinsdale, Ill./Hinsdale Central) and Varela each had a hand in two wins for Bucknell. Calcaterra teamed up with Paulina Gamboa for the victory at No. 1 doubles and won her No. 4 singles match, while Varela paired with Ashley Globerman at No. 2 doubles. She also won in straight sets at second singles.

ABOUT ST. BONAVENTURE

St. Bonaventure comes into the weekend with a 3-5 record. The Bonnies collected a win over Mercyhurst (7-2) in October, and continued with victories against Saint Francis (Pa.) (7-0) and Youngstown State (4-3) this spring season. St. Bonaventure and Bucknell have had a common opponent this year in Pittsburgh. Both teams took a 6-1 loss to the Panthers.
The Bonnies have also faced Bucknell's Patriot League foe Colgate in dual action. The Raiders won 6-1 in that matchup with St. Bonaventure's lone point coming at No. 4 singles from Amanda Pallikunnel.
St. Bonaventure had just one all-conference player last season in Manuela Marin-Salcedo. Marin-Salcedo, now a sophomore, was a Second Team All-Atlantic 10 selection in 2009.
Bucknell has a commanding 8-1 series lead over St. Bonaventure. In their last meeting, Bucknell defeated the Bonnies 6-1 in February 2009. Among those Bison earning wins were Lucido (6-2, 6-2) at No. 2 singles and Iepuras (6-0, 6-0) at third singles. Bucknell also won points in doubles and No. 6 singles due to St. Bonaventure defaults.

ABOUT SYRACUSE

Syracuse has picked up where it left off last season. The Orange is 9-2 through the first matches of the year, having won each of its last three contests. The team's only two losses have come 7-0 against Michigan and 6-1 against Princeton. Among its wins are 7-0 sweeps over Albany, Rutgers, Niagara and Pitt.
The Orange were 16-7 overall and 10-4 in the BIG EAST a year ago. That record gave Syracuse the No. 7 seed in the conference tournament where it was ousted by No. 2 DePaul in the quarterfinals. Returning from that team is sophomore and No. 1 singles player Emily Harman, the Orange's lone all-conference selection.
Bucknell is just 0-1 against Syracuse. The team's lone meeting came in 2008 with the Orange walking away with a 6-1 win. Lauren Rottkamp (Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y./Cold Spring Harbor) earned the only point for Bucknell winning 6-3, 7-6 (5) at No. 6 singles.

LOOKING AHEAD
The Bison will have a short break following their trip through New York. They will return to the court for a road match at Villanova on Saturday, March 20.

Bucknell University Athletics

Bucknell Women's Tennis Swings Through New York for Three Matches in Three Days

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