Tennis: Canadians start with successful season

The Canadians of the women’s tennis team have started out strong.

Junior Natalie Martin and senior Stephanie Harmazy, have yet to lose a singles or doubles match during the spring season. Martin, of Montreal, is 4-0 in doubles with partner sophomore Hayley Homburg.

Harmazy, a native of Richmond, British Columbia, has won her only doubles match, with sophomore Carrie Larson.

Both are 4-0 in singles play.

After expressing the team’s success was all that mattered in the long run, Harmazy still acknowledged the novelty of the Canadians’ early achievements.

Teams to play on the road early, often

The men’s and women’s tennis teams play their entire non-conference schedule on the road.

The teams will not host a match at Darling Courts until March 21, when Tennessee-Martin will play both squads.

It has affected the players

“I don’t really mind,” said Martin.

She said she like to stay at places on the road, including hotels.

Thus far, traveling hasn’t affected the women’s team, with all of their wins coming on the road.

Both teams cruise during past weekend

Both the men’s and women’s teams had dominating victories last weekend, and swept singles and doubles in certain competitions.

The men did so against St. Francis (Penn.) on Sunday, winning every singles match in straight sets, without a doubles victory any closer than 8-3.

The women shut out Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne on their match on Friday.

The women won every singles match in straight sets with the exception Sasidharan’s No. 1 singles match, which went a third set. The narrowest victory was at No. 3 doubles, won by freshman Abby Allgire and sophomore Carrie Larson.

Nestrud only male to win all the singles matches

Junior Jordan Nestrud won all three of his singles matches last weekend.

He was the only men’s player to accomplish this feat. Nestrud also holds the best overall singles record on the team for the spring season at 6-2 in the No. 3 spot.

Junior Vuk Milicevic faced a fellow South African countryman, sophomore Mpiloenhle Migogo of Indiana State on Feb. 15 in Terre Haute, Ind.

Milicevic is from Forna Valley, South Africa. Mpiloenhle is from Johannesburg, South Africa.

Migogo defeated Milicevic 7-6 (7-5), 6-1 at No. 4 singles.

Migogo paired with Indiana State’s other South African player, freshman Joshua Smith, to defeat Nestrud and senior Sean Bush 8-7 (7-5).

Smith is from Cape Town, South Africa.

JC Clark can be reached at 581-7944 or at jrclark2@eiu.edu.