Score: Ithaca College 9, Elmira College 0
Records: Ithaca College (5-0, 5-0 E8), Elmira College (3-4, 2-3 E8)
Location: Wheeler Tennis Courts – Ithaca, NY
 
Ithaca, NY -- Flying high after a weekend sweep of St. John Fisher College and Utica College, the Elmira College women's tennis looked to carry that momentum to the road when it took on Empire 8 Conference heavyweight Ithaca College on Tuesday afternoon. Unfortunately, Elmira could not gain any traction right from the hop, as the Bombers swept all three doubles matches en route to a straight 9-0 sweep.
 
The Soaring Eagles have used the doubles matches to get off to a quick start in their most recent matches; however, Ithaca did well to stymie Elmira on Tuesday to build a commanding lead through doubles play. The Bombers took 24-of-29 games played. The second doubles tandem of Stephanie Tock '16 and Megan Fitzgerald '18 put up the strongest resistance, ultimately falling 8-4, which snapped a four-match winning streak for the tandem.
 
Singles did not prove to be the salvation for Elmira, as the Bombers rolled to straight-set victories at all six spots, including 6-0, 6-0 victories at the second, fourth, and sixth positions. With the match victory, Ithaca moves to a perfect 5-0 in Empire 8 play, while Elmira falls to 2-3 within the conference.
 
Turning Point
Facing a daunting task after dropping all three doubles matches to begin the day; Elmira had its work cut out for it if the team hoped to stake a comeback. The comeback bid took a major hit when Ayaka Yoshino '16 took her second singles loss of the season when she fell at first position 6-0, 6-1.
 
Match Recap

• Elmira only took only five games during the doubles session, while the Soaring Eagles were held to just three games total in singles.
• The pairing of Tock and Fitzgerald at second doubles gave IC fits, but ultimately was not able to close out a victory in an 8-4 defeat. The four games ended up being half of Elmira's total for the afternoon.

 
News and Notes

• It was a matchup between two conference powerhouses at first singles, as Yoshino and IC's Hayley Kusak carried perfect singles records in Empire 8 play into this afternoon's match. Kusak proved to be too much for the Elmira senior, dealing Yoshino her first singles loss in conference play since falling to Carly Siegel of IC at second singles last season.
• The 9-0 loss marks the first time the Soaring Eagles have been swept since falling to Ithaca College in the season opener of the 2013-14 season.
• Fitzgerald and Tock had been unbeaten since locking down their positions at third and fourth singles, respectively. Fitzgerald carried a perfect 4-0 record in Empire 8 singles play, while she entered the day with a 3-0 record at the third position. Tock also had a 3-0 mark this season at the fourth position. Both players earned their first blemish of the season this afternoon.

 
Scores
Singles
1. Hayley Kusak (ITHACA) def. Ayaka Yoshino (ELMIRA) 6-0, 6-1
2. McKinleigh Lair (ITHACA) def. Ellen Plowman (ELMIRA) 6-0, 6-0
3. Caroline Dunn (ITHACA) def. Megan Fitzgerald (ELMIRA) 6-0, 6-1
4. Marni Blumenthal (ITHACA) def. Stephanie Tock (ELMIRA) 6-0, 6-0
5. Jodi Grosberg (ITHACA) def. Emily Green (ELMIRA) 6-0, 6-1
6. Kathryn Shaffer (ITHACA) def. Caitlin Dwyer (ELMIRA) 6-0, 6-0
 
Doubles
1. Hayley Kusak/McKinleigh Lair (ITHACA) def. Ayaka Yoshino/Ellen Plowman (ELMIRA) 8-1
2. Caroline Dunn/Kathryn Shaffer (ITHACA) def. Stephanie Tock/Megan Fitzgerald (ELMIRA) 8-4
3. Sydney Greenspan/Jodi Grosberg (ITHACA) def. Caitlin Dwyer/Emily Green (ELMIRA) 8-0
 
Up Next
The Soaring Eagles will be back in action this weekend when members of the squad will travel to take part in the USTA/ITA Northeast Regional Championships to be hosted by William Smith College in Geneva, NY. Play is set to begin on Saturday, September 26^th.