Box Score Geneseo, NY - The SUNY Geneseo Knights saw a 40 match conference winning streak come crashing down at the hands of the SUNY Oneonta women's tennis team yesterday.  The Knights, holder of the last eight of nine SUNY Athletic Conference Championships dropped their first dual match to the Red Dragons yesterday since 2002 in an incredible dramatic fashion 5-4.  The last victory for the Red Dragons against the Knights came on Sep. 7, 2002 by a score of 7-2.

In doubles the Knights came out flying with confidence and jumped out to a 2-0 lead.  However, with the number three team of sophomore Danielle Swierczyna (Hamilton, NJ/Steinert) and freshman Emma Messenger (Marlboro/Marlboro) still on court down 2-4 the Red Dragon gear went to the next level.  The pair salvaged the double stanza winning six out of the next seven games and secured a very hard fought number three flight victory.  The win at number three proved crucial keeping the Red Dragons in striking distance only down 1-2.  The win here anchored the Red Dragon team to strike back at the defending champs.

In singles play the number one player Alyssa Brault (Rochester/Churchville-Chili) was in a battle of long rallies and intense play but all the big points went in Brault's direction and secured a 6-2, 6-2 win.  At the number four position freshman Mya Lispscomb was dominant and never threatened as she simply played consistent tennis in securing her lopsided 6-1, 6-0  victory.  At the number six position freshman Emma Messenger (Marlboro/Marlboro) showed little cracking today as she gains valuable experience  out steadying her opponent triumphing 6-1, 6-1.  The number three and four players junior Michelle Halpern (Rye Brook/Blind Brook) and senior Samantha Felice (Seneca Falls/Mynderse Academy) both won their first sets but the Knights experience held to form and unfortunately they dropped their decisions.   In another positive note talented freshman Gianna Papini (Helwett/George W. Hewlett) won another alternate match 8-3 keeping her winning streak alive as she also gains valuable experience.

With the dual match now deadlocked at 4-4 the decider was in the hands of freshman Julieta Eulau (Oceanside/Oceanside) playing against a seasoned Geneseo Knights senior.  Eulau won a very tight first set 6-4 and Geneseo won a tight second set 5-7.  At one time Eulau was serving for the match but nerves and fatigue were becoming a factor.  Into the super-tiebreaker the pair went to decide the dual match.  Eulau had just a little more gasoline in the tank and outlasted the Geneseo senior 10-3 in the breaker.  

The match was over and the team mobbed Eulau as the Red Dragons broke a 40 match conference winning streak and a fifteen year drought of losing to the Knights.   The victory also brought the Red Dragons to now an undefeated 5-0 record for this fall campaign. A celebration ensued but the Red Dragons know that they could see the Knights again down the road and therefore SUNY Oneonta has to continue to improve.  Head Coach Lonnie Mitchel and Assistant Coach Samantha Butcher each echoed the theme going into the season, too work the new freshmen which constitutes seven out of the 11 players on the squad and push them hard and see how we come out of it.  Even though there is a very long road ahead they both said "it was a victory that was a dividend because of BOTH the physical and mental preparation.  They will need it with three more conference opponents still waiting.

The Red Dragons head back on the road with two matches on Long Island this weekend.  The Red Dragons face St. Joseph College in Patchogue, NY on Saturday, September 22^nd beginning at 2 PM at their sport complex followed by a Sunday, September 23^rd matchup against SUNY Farmingdale beginning at 10 AM on the campus of Farmingdale.