FLUSHING, N.Y. - Saint Michael's College women's tennis sophomore Annabelle Aldrete (Wichita, Kan./Andover eCademy) advanced to the Round of 32 and aided one of three Purple Knight doubles tandems that reached that stage of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) East Regional Championship over the weekend. The tournament, which featured singles and doubles draws, took place at the United States Tennis Association (USTA) Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, home of the US Open grand slam event since 1978.
 
SAINT MICHAEL'S LEADERS

• Junior Emma Gredenhag (Jacksonville, Fla./Bishop Kenny), 1 win
• Sophomore Lucy McPherson (Vancouver, British Columbia/Magee Secondary School), 1 win
• First-year Olivia Larsen (Riverview, New Brunswick/Riverview), 1 win

MATCH FACTS

• The Purple Knights had nine players entered in the 77-slot singles draw while four doubles tandems were placed among 36 spots in that bracket.
• Saint Michael's women's tennis players competed at the ITA East Regional Championship for the fourth time.

THE ACTION

• After six Purple Knights earned byes into the Round of 64 during singles, a trio played in the Round of 128 on Friday. Larsen nabbed a 6-1, 6-3 win over a foe from Chestnut Hill College, while sophomores Kasey Johnson (Naples, Maine/Lake Region) and Jedidah Xu (Ellington, Conn./Ellington) both lost in straight sets.
• Later in the day during the Round of 64, McPherson was defeated in a comeback effort by a Queens College player, 2-6, 7-5, 12-10, while Larsen had a close second set in a 6-1, 6-4 loss against a Saint Thomas Aquinas College opponent. First-year Ana Maria Ricaurte (Guayaquil, Ecuador/Colegio Alemán Humboldt du Guayaquil) lost a 6-2, 6-4 decision to a Northeast 10 Conference counterpart from Southern New Hampshire University.
• Aldrete advanced to the next round when the No. 10 seed withdrew, and junior Jaylin Bedard (Fairfield, Vt./BFA-Saint Albans) lost to the fourth seed. Gredenhag and sophomore Katie Rocha (Stratham, N.H./Exeter) also fell in straight sets.
• On Saturday, Aldrete was knocked off in the Round of 32 by a Wilmington (Del.) University player, 6-2, 6-1.
• During Round of 64 doubles play on Friday, Gredenhag and McPherson earned an 8-5 victory over a Post University tandem, while Johnson and Rocha lost an 8-4 decision against Bentley University.
• On Saturday, the Purple Knight tandems of Aldrete/Xu, Larsen/Ricaurte and Gredenhag/McPherson all lost in the Round of 32, with the former two earning first-round byes.

NEXT MATCH

• Saturday at Assumption University, 1 p.m.