Men's, women's tennis return from West Coast with mixed results

With the men's tennis team's victory against Loyola Marymount hanging in the balance, the men's No. 1 singles player, senior Kyle Kliegerman, took the Lions' top player to the limit — the third and final set.

Kliegerman gave up the first set by a total of five games to seven. He would battle back, though, winning the second after a grueling tiebreaker and then taking the third and final set, 6-4.

Kliegerman was not the only Tiger barely surviving his singles match against Loyola Marymount. Other Princeton victors included senior No. 2 Judson Williams, who won his match by the score of 6-4, 7-5, and freshman Tim Kofol, who escaped a bit more easily by the score of 6-3, 6-4.

The Tigers then went two-for-three in doubles to secure the doubles point. The combination of Kliegerman and senior John Portlock won the top match, while sophomore Trevor Smith and Kofol were able to prevail in the third match. By earning the doubles point and splitting the singles, Princeton was able to get a much-needed 4-3 victory to finish a California roadtrip which saw both the Princeton men's and women's teams struggle in their respective competitions.

In all, the men came away with two victories and three defeats, while the women lost two of three in California and then lost another upon returning to Princeton. Both teams hope to use these matches to prepare for the upcoming Ivy League schedule.

"By playing against these teams, we were seeing if we could polish our games in preparation for the Ivy League," senior Anne Coates said.

The men started out the week by taking on No. 10 Pepperdine (11-4). The Tigers were washed away by the Waves as they lost four out of the top five singles matches as well as all three doubles contests en route to a 5-2 defeat.

Princeton then travelled down by the border to meet with San Diego State (5-8) and the University of San Diego (7-6).

The Tigers did not fare so well against the Aztecs on Tuesday, as they again lost four of the top five singles matches as well as two out of three doubles. They came out with another 5-2 loss.

Princeton did, however, get back on track March 21 with a win over the Toreros — who were coming off a win over No. 21 Arizona State the previous day.

This time, the Tigers' reversed the tables by winning four of the top five singles matches and coming away with two out of three doubles contests to win, 5-2.

Following the two San Diego meetings, Princeton, once again, returned to the Los Angeles area to take on the University of Southern California before the Loyola Marymount match.

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Princeton would receive no mercy from the No. 22 ranked Trojans (11-3), who would give up only one set while overpowering the Tigers, 7-0.

The women's team would meet similarly overpowering schools in its four contests.

"The schools we played last week were simply better," Coates said.

The squad started off against No. 13 Pepperdine (10-7) Mar. 19. The Tigers lost the top four singles matches and then won the bottom two by forfeit. In all, the Tigers were able to win only 26 of 92 total singles games against the Waves.

Princeton then took on the Denver Pioneers Mar. 21, losing only the top two singles matches while taking the bottom four in addition to three doubles contests on its way to a 5-2 victory.

The Tigers finished off the road trip against a tough San Diego State squad. Princeton's only singles win was junior No. 2 Kristi Watson's three-set victory.

The Tigers won only one of three doubles matches against the Aztecs — the No. 3 duo of Coates and freshman Mateya McCoy took a 9-7 victory.

Upon returning home, the Tigers were met by the University of Alabama-Birmingham for a Monday afternoon get-together. The No. 53 Blazers took it to Princeton, giving up only one of nine matches. With a 6-4, 6-1 victory, Coates was the only Tiger to come out on top.

Though coming off a difficult roadtrip, the two Princeton squads will hope to use these recent matches to help prepare for Ivy League play which begins this weekend.