SEATTLE – The Seattle U tennis teams may have had their seasons cut short, but they have plenty of reasons to be hopeful for the future. The women's team was on its way to putting together a solid season in 2019-20, garnering three Western Athletic Conference (WAC) awards in the spring and posting a school-record effort in the fall, while the men received two WAC awards of their own for their efforts in doubles play.
Women's tennis competed in two tournaments in the fall – the Cougar Classic on Oct. 4-6 and the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Northwest Regional Championships on Oct. 16-22. In the former, sophomores Martina Asciuto and Jillian Rasmussen won their doubles consolation bracket, defeating their finals opponents 6-3, while classmate Alisa Sabotic clinched a first-round victory in three sets over her opponent from Montana State. At the ITA Regionals, freshman Jade Lancaster became the first woman in Redhawk history to reach the third round of the tournament while senior Peggy Rooke triumphed over her first-round competitor from Pacific, 6-4, 6-1.
At the start of the spring season, Seattle U faced three straight in-state schools, including No. 14 Washington, before tallying their first win as a team in a 4-3 thriller over Idaho State on Jan. 25. Junior Hannah Gianan led the way in singles play with her 6-0, 6-4 victory in the number one spot, which earned her the WAC Women's Singles Athlete of the Week Award for Jan. 20-26. Sabotic and junior Kyra Jung also joined Gianan in the singles win column. The doubles team of Asciuto and sophomore Hannah Grossman posted a grind-out 7-6 (7-5) win of their own, while a Jung/Rasmussen pair posted the same score in their own match.
The Redhawks won their very next match, a solid 5-2 victory over South Dakota on Feb. 1 at the Tennis Center at Sand Point. Lancaster pulled out a 6-4, 6-2 singles win over her opponent, while Sabotic, Rasmussen and junior Michelle Bader came out on top in their own matches. The Asciuto/Grossman team pulled out yet another doubles victory, 6-1 and, shortly afterward, Jung and Bader had their own 6-1 match to clinch the doubles point on the way to Seattle U's second team win.
One week later, against Montana State, Gianan and Lancaster teamed up for a nail biting 7-6 (12-10) triumph in the No. 1 doubles slot. Their performance in that match earned them the WAC Women's Doubles Team of the Week Award for Feb. 3-9.
Seattle U followed that with a sweep over British Columbia at the Amy Yee Tennis Center on Feb. 14. Lancaster once again dominated her singles competitor, 6-4, 6-0, on her way to winning WAC Women's Singles Player of the Week for Feb. 10-16. Meanwhile, Jung and Bader led doubles play with a 6-0 sweep. The next day, the Redhawks defeated Whitman College, 6-1, at the Jupiter Tennis Center; this time, Asciuto was the star in singles play, overcoming her opponent with a masterful 6-0, 6-0 performance. Gianan and Lancaster continued their winning ways in doubles, winning 6-1.
On the men's side, senior Adrian Alvarez Sanabria and freshman Lars Schmassmann stood out in November, winning the WAC Men's Doubles Team of the Month after reaching their flight's semifinals in the Gonzaga Fall Invitational and missing the finals by just a single-point tiebreaker. Seniors Alex Chan and Trenton Nield later clinched their own WAC honor as the conference's Men's Doubles Team of the Week for Jan 20-26 after winning 6-3 on Jan. 25 against Idaho's number one doubles team. The squad ended their season with a 7-0 sweep over Bellevue College on Senior Day.
Women's tennis competed in two tournaments in the fall – the Cougar Classic on Oct. 4-6 and the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Northwest Regional Championships on Oct. 16-22. In the former, sophomores Martina Asciuto and Jillian Rasmussen won their doubles consolation bracket, defeating their finals opponents 6-3, while classmate Alisa Sabotic clinched a first-round victory in three sets over her opponent from Montana State. At the ITA Regionals, freshman Jade Lancaster became the first woman in Redhawk history to reach the third round of the tournament while senior Peggy Rooke triumphed over her first-round competitor from Pacific, 6-4, 6-1.
At the start of the spring season, Seattle U faced three straight in-state schools, including No. 14 Washington, before tallying their first win as a team in a 4-3 thriller over Idaho State on Jan. 25. Junior Hannah Gianan led the way in singles play with her 6-0, 6-4 victory in the number one spot, which earned her the WAC Women's Singles Athlete of the Week Award for Jan. 20-26. Sabotic and junior Kyra Jung also joined Gianan in the singles win column. The doubles team of Asciuto and sophomore Hannah Grossman posted a grind-out 7-6 (7-5) win of their own, while a Jung/Rasmussen pair posted the same score in their own match.
The Redhawks won their very next match, a solid 5-2 victory over South Dakota on Feb. 1 at the Tennis Center at Sand Point. Lancaster pulled out a 6-4, 6-2 singles win over her opponent, while Sabotic, Rasmussen and junior Michelle Bader came out on top in their own matches. The Asciuto/Grossman team pulled out yet another doubles victory, 6-1 and, shortly afterward, Jung and Bader had their own 6-1 match to clinch the doubles point on the way to Seattle U's second team win.
One week later, against Montana State, Gianan and Lancaster teamed up for a nail biting 7-6 (12-10) triumph in the No. 1 doubles slot. Their performance in that match earned them the WAC Women's Doubles Team of the Week Award for Feb. 3-9.
Seattle U followed that with a sweep over British Columbia at the Amy Yee Tennis Center on Feb. 14. Lancaster once again dominated her singles competitor, 6-4, 6-0, on her way to winning WAC Women's Singles Player of the Week for Feb. 10-16. Meanwhile, Jung and Bader led doubles play with a 6-0 sweep. The next day, the Redhawks defeated Whitman College, 6-1, at the Jupiter Tennis Center; this time, Asciuto was the star in singles play, overcoming her opponent with a masterful 6-0, 6-0 performance. Gianan and Lancaster continued their winning ways in doubles, winning 6-1.
On the men's side, senior Adrian Alvarez Sanabria and freshman Lars Schmassmann stood out in November, winning the WAC Men's Doubles Team of the Month after reaching their flight's semifinals in the Gonzaga Fall Invitational and missing the finals by just a single-point tiebreaker. Seniors Alex Chan and Trenton Nield later clinched their own WAC honor as the conference's Men's Doubles Team of the Week for Jan 20-26 after winning 6-3 on Jan. 25 against Idaho's number one doubles team. The squad ended their season with a 7-0 sweep over Bellevue College on Senior Day.