POCATELLO, Idaho- The Idaho State women's tennis team opened the fall season Sept. 9-11 at the ISU Invite at Capell Park. The weekend brought a lot of success for the Bengals and it was an opportunity for growth.
"Overall I was really happy with how we competed," Idaho State coach
Gretchen Maloney said. "A lot of the girls for various reasons didn't play a lot of matches over the summer. I felt like they competed really well this weekend. I felt like they were a little rusty in some areas but they worked on all the things they were supposed to and by the third day they were playing a lot better. We have a lot of fall tournaments so we have a big opportunity to improve. I love fall for that reason because each individual can work on their own personal things that they need to work on."
Some of the key results from the weekend tournament came from Sol and
Lola O'Lideadha ,
Olivia Mikkelson and
Leah Kuruvilla.
 In doubles play Sol and Lola advanced to the semi-finals of their draw, beating a doubles tandem from Montana 8-2 and losing a tough semi-final matchup against Baptista and Discenza of Boise State, 8-6.
In the orange draw, Sol earned a 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 over Dylan Lolofie of Weber State while Lola rallied for a 1-6, 6-4, 7-5 over Marta Garcia Roboredo of Montana State.
Lola would advance to the semi-finals after a 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 win over Megan Davies of Weber State.
"Lola beat the No. 2 seed and beat a top player from Weber State," Maloney said. "She did it when she had an injury. She battled against Boise State in the semis. She was a warrior for us. She and Sol played really solid doubles."
Mikkelson advanced to the championship match of her draw. She won 6-2, 6-4 over Rosie Sterk of Montana and then beat Jessica Hill of Weber State, 6-3, 6-2 in the semi-finals. In the championship match she lost 7-6 (4), 6-3 to Li Yangpingan of Weber State.
"She is really playing well," Maloney said on Mikkelson. "I am excited to see what she can do for us. She is really gritty and fights hard for every point."
Mikkelson and Kuruvilla also advanced to the championship match of their doubles draw.
They beat a team from Utah Tech 8-5 in the opening round and then knocked off a team from Montana 8-3 before falling to a doubles team from Boise State, 8-5 in the championship match.
After the three days the one thing that jumped out to Maloney was that she has a deep team. When conference play starts in the spring, filling out that lineup card will be difficult.
Â
"I feel like we are super deep this year," she said. "I feel like 1-8 anyone could play any number and compete and battle. It is going to be hard to figure out who is where in the lineup because we have a really deep team this year. I am excited about our team our team and doing well in conference because they have the mindset to work hard. They really want it. They want to put the time in and they are really gritty."
Idaho State heads to Colorado Springs for a tournament at Air Force Sept. 15-18.
Â
Â
