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Sydney Lee's three-set win gave CMS the winning point over Hawaii Pacific
Sydney Lee's three-set win gave CMS the winning point over Hawaii Pacific
Posted: Jan 18, 2020

Sydney Lee's Three-Set Clincher Gives CMS Women's Tennis 4-3 Win over Hawaii Pacific

Box Score

HONOLULU, Hawaii - Sophomore Sydney Lee prevailed in three sets (6-0, 4-6, 6-2) at No. 5 singles as the No. 2 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps women's tennis team defeated Hawaii Pacific (ranked No. 8 in Division II) in a close 4-3 decision on Saturday afternoon at Kamehameha High School.

With the win, CMS improves to 2-0 on the season after also defeating Hawaii Pacific 6-1 on Friday. The Sharks slip to 0-2, with both losses coming to the Athenas this weekend. 

Unlike yesterday, the Athenas fell behind 1-0 after doubles and had to battle back by winning four of the six singles lines. Sophomore Sarah Bahsoun and first-year Justine Leong picked up a 6-4 win at No. 2 doubles, but the Sharks won tight matches at No. 1 (6-4) and No. 3 (7-5) to take the lead going into singles. 

CMS quickly tied up the score, as sophomore Devon Wolfe rolled to a 6-0, 6-0 win at No. 6 singles. Sophomore Crystal Juan also had a strong effort at No. 3 singles, coming away with a 6-2, 6-2 win, and Leong won a tight match at No. 1 by a 6-4, 7-5 score to remain undefeated against non-Division I competition (her only defeat so far this year has been to Jada Hart of UCLA at the ITA Fall Nationals). 

The Sharks got their second point at No. 4 with a straight-set win, making the score 3-2 in favor of the Athenas with the final two matches going to three sets. Lee rolled to a first-set win at No. 5 (6-0), but came up just short with a 6-4 defeat in the second to go to a third set. At No. 2, junior Rebecca Berger bounced back from a 6-2 defeat in the first set to earn a split with a 6-2 win in the second. 

Lee was able to get an early lead in the third set and take command, bringing home the win for the Athenas with a 6-2 win in the third. Berger came up just short on her court with a 6-3 defeat in the third, making the final score 4-3. 

CMS will be back in action on Feb. 1 when it hosts its home opener against UC San Diego, another Division II powerhouse which is in transition to Division I, at the Biszantz Family Tennis Center. A year ago, CMS won 4-3 at UC San Diego, with Berger providing the clinching point in a third-set tiebreaker.