After their tough loss last week against the Xavier Musketeers, the UConn Women’s Tennis team looks to switch things around as they face the Stony Brook Seawolves on Friday, followed by the Rutgers Scarlet Knights on Sunday at home.
There has been a checkered history between Stony Brook and UConn, going back to Feb. 21, 2009, when the Seawolves swept the Huskies 7-0. After that, Stony Brook won every single match up until 2016, when Connecticut took the win 5-2. Since then, the Huskies have won five out of the seven matches played against them.
One of these wins was a 6-1 victory last year. At this match, Olivia Wright led the way for the Huskies in first singles, winning 6-3, 6-4, taking the first singles point for the Huskies. Connecticut completely dominated the doubles matchups as well, with Wright and her doubles partner Marie Constantinou taking the win 6-2, notching the two doubles points for the Huskies.
When you look at the history between UConn and Rutgers, it has been in the favor of the Scarlet Knights. Dating back to 2009, Rutgers has won every single match, except in 2018 when Connecticut took the victory, 5-2.
The last time these two teams played against each other was on Feb. 13, 2022. Even though they were able to gain momentum at various opportunities, they were swept 7-0. At that match, Coach Glen Marshall stressed on matching Rutgers’ energy and focus.
“We fought hard all the way but need to break through on some of the crucial points to finish out sets and matches. Overall, I was pleased with the fight and effort, and playing tough matches early in the season will make us stronger down the road,” Marshall remarked.
The key to UConn winning these two matches is playing with a more commanding force, especially in their longer rallies. The longer stretch between matches than they had last week when they had just one day in between Quinnipiac and Xavier gave them more time to enhance their skills for these matchups. They also need to maintain their focus and hard work that they have proved in past matchups to win against Rutgers.
On Friday, the first serve is scheduled for 6 p.m. Then, Sunday’s match is scheduled for a 10:30 a.m. start. For Husky fans who wish to stay updated during the match, they can do so with iOnCourtLive scoring.