Grinnell vs. Illinois Wesleyan Box Score
Grinnell vs. Augustana Box Score

ROCK ISLAND, Ill. – The Grinnell College women's tennis team split matches Saturday, defeating Illinois Wesleyan University 8-1 and then falling to Augustana College by the same count.

Grinnell swept singles play against Illinois Wesleyan with three-set wins by Shirlene Luk '15 and Sadhana Athreya '14 at Nos. 1 and 2, and two-set wins by Hanna Feldman '14, Virginia Purcell '17, Shanaz Daneshdoost '17 and Emma Macdonald '14 at Nos. 3 through 6.

Luk and Athreya won 8-5 at No. 1 doubles, while Feldman and Purcell teamed up for an 8-2 victory at No. 3.

Feldman and Purcell also won 8-6 at No. 3 doubles against Augustana.

"We played two very competitive matches in extremely hot conditions today," said Grinnell coach Andy Hamilton, whose squad is 1-1 on the season. "The tennis was very strong at times, and at other times the heat and fatigue seemed to affect play.

"I'm particularly pleased with our doubles play against Augustana, even though we only won one of three," he added. "I'd like to highlight Hanna and Ginny, as they came together for the first time this year in doubles and won two matches. Sadhana and Shirlene showed their veteran backgrounds as they came away with tie-breaker victories in singles against Illinois Wesleyan. Emma and Shanaz played some of the stronger singles matches of the day – I'm happy to see they'll be tough at the bottom of our lineup."

The Pioneers open Midwest Conference South Division play Sunday with matches against Monmouth College and Illinois College.

"While we need to regroup by playing two conference opponents, hopefully we'll be able to physically gain our footing after a long hot day of tennis Saturday," said Hamilton.