By Garrett Gess · Staff Writer
BEAVER FALLS — Grove City College women’s tennis record remains perfect after defeating Geneva 6-1 on the road Saturday.
With five straight wins to start the season, the Wolverines are having their best start since 2018.
Grove City took two of three doubles matches to claim the opening point against Geneva. After the Wolverines lost the first doubles match, sophomore Grace Stitt and freshman Reagan Dougherty cruised to a 6-0 victory, while junior Iris Kiehl and sophomore Blaire Beatty earned a 6-1 win.
The Wolverines carried the momentum into singles play, winning five of the six matches to earn a 6-1 final after their opening point. Sophomore Grace Yurko opened Grove City’s singles victories with a 6-4, 6-3 win. Dougherty followed with a 6-2, 6-0 victory. Kiehl continued the Wolverines’ run, winning 6-1, 6-1. Beatty produced the same score. Sophomore Emma Flanigan closed out Grove City’s singles wins by defeating her opponent 6-0, 6-1.
“We have a really young team with nine out of 14 girls being freshmen or sophomores. The upperclassmen have been great role models and support, and even though there are only a few of them, they have a big impact on leading us underclassmen,” Flanigan said. “The underclassmen have really made a big impact on the lineup, but beyond just ability, they bring a lot of energy, strong work ethic and competitiveness to the team.”
Although five of the team’s six starters are sophomores or freshmen, they are not without experience. Five starters this year also started for the Wolverines last year, with four starting as freshmen. With much of the roster not even in their last or second-to-last season, the Wolverines might be far from their peak.
With the win over Geneva, Grove City also secured their fourth conference victory of the season. The Wolverines have won all five of their matches this season, including four by 7-0 scores. Grove City opened the season with sweeps over Houghton, Westminster, Washington & Jefferson and Waynesburg. So far so good, Grove City will look to make a run for the PAC title after coming in as the runner-up last year.
Historically, the women’s tennis program has been dominant, winning 25 straight titles from 1987 through 2011 and five since then. This year, the Wolverines are looking to win their first PAC title since 2023. Standing in their way is Allegheny, the defending champion and conference favorite. Grove City will host the Gators next Saturday for a contest, which could preview a playoff matchup.
“This year, Coach has really emphasized loving each other as teammates and sisters in Christ, as well as loving our opponents well as a goal slash mission for the team,” Flanigan said. “As far as actual tennis goals go, Coach wants us to be more comfortable and aggressive at the net and to get better at placing the ball in the open court. In my opinion, we’re going to need a lot of hype and energy to win the PACs, which is something the team has been really good at this year.
“Additionally, I think the doubles point will be big, and I think every player will need to be patient, mentally tough and play with freedom. There’s definitely the talent to win PACs on our team if we can all play smart and confidently.”
With lots of tennis to be played, this year’s Wolverine squad is like the 2023 PAC title team. In that year’s preseason poll, Grove City was not even projected to finish in the top two. Allegheny then outplayed Grove City in their regular-season match.
The Wolverines found resolve, proving the pollsters wrong and winning convincingly in the rematch against Allegheny for the title. While last year’s team came up short by losing in the PAC title match, Grove City looks to flip the script this year.
Last week, Stitt won PAC Player of the Week, and Dougherty was named PAC Newcomer of the Week. The two pair up in doubles matches and continue to succeed. The Wolverines played at Franciscan Monday and will return to Walters-Zbell Tennis Courts to host Penn State Behrend at 12 p.m. Saturday.
