After a strong fall season, the Valparaiso University women’s tennis team has started the spring campaign on a high note, going on the road to top in-state foe IUPUI in convincing fashion on Saturday in Indianapolis. After downing the Jaguars 7-0, the Crusaders now own an unblemished 2-0 record as they also prevailed in their lone dual match of the fall.

How It Happened

• The Crusaders started the night by taking the doubles point. The all-underclassmen combo of freshman Claire Czerwonka (Kenosha, Wis. / Saint Joseph Catholic Academy) and sophomore Dao Sysouvanh (Sun Prairie Wis. / Sun Prairie) was victorious at No. 2 doubles 6-0, while junior Meg Modesto (Chesterton, Ind. / Chesterton) and sophomore Jordan Kopfer (Eagan, Minn. / Eastview) had a successful night at No. 3 doubles, defeating Hayley Trinkle and Marina Schneiger 6-3.
• The first singles match to finish came at No. 6, where Randi Wind (Park Ridge, Ill. / Maine South) whitewashed her opponent 6-0, 6-0 to give Valpo a 2-0 lead in the team scoring.
• Freshman Jelena Vujanic (Elk Grove Village, Ill. / Elk Grove) put the Crusaders on the doorstep of a team win with her No. 2 singles victory, giving Valpo a commanding 3-0 lead with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Krystal Grubb.
• Modesto delivered the clinching W at No. 3, besting Samantha Mayer 6-4, 6-3. Czerwonka got in on the act with a 6-3, 7-5 triumph against IUPUI’s top singles player, Valeriia Lavrenchuk.
• The two sophomores, Kopfer and Sysouvanh, finished out the 7-0 sweep with wins at No. 5 and No. 4 singles, respectively. Kopfer competed against Schneiger in the only match that went to a third set, with Kopfer prevailing in a tight 6-4, 6-7, 10-3 showdown.

Inside the Match

• The progress of the program is clear, as Valpo has already equaled its season win total from a year ago. Furthermore, the 7-0 win comes against an IUPUI team that beat Valpo 4-3 a year ago, 5-2 in 2016 and 4-3 in 2015.
• Sysouvanh and Czerwonka played doubles together throughout the fall. This marked their sixth victory as a tandem to keep them part of a tie for the team lead in doubles wins. Sysouvanh now has seven career doubles wins.
• Kopfer corralled her sixth doubles victory of the year to stay part of the team leadership and her third win when paired with Modesto. Modesto also gained her sixth doubles victory of the campaign and the 14^th of her career. This marked career doubles victory No. 9 for Kopfer.
• The singles triumphs permitted Valpo’s freshmen (Czerwonka and Vujanic) to remain tied atop the team leaderboard with seven wins apiece.
• Modesto upped her season win total to six, while boosting her career total to 19.
• Kopfer came up with her ninth career singles win and fifth this year, already shattering her season win total from a year ago.
• Sysouvanh gained her fourth win this season and the ninth of her career.
• Wind collected her 20^th career singles triumph while picking up her third win of this season.

Up Next

The Crusaders will face another in-state opponent next week as they make their way to West Lafayette to collide with the Purdue Boilermakers of the Big Ten Conference. That match is slated to get underway at 5 p.m. CT.