Drake won the final two games of its home stand in convincing fashion. The Bulldogs defeated South Dakota on Jan. 29 and North Dakota last Friday.
Against South Dakota, Drake won by a score of 6-1, getting big help from junior Manca Krizman, who was named Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week for her efforts.
Krizman and senior Jessica Aguilera gave Drake the early 3-0 lead, with help in singles play from senior Gabby Demos. Freshman Nell Boyd and junior Ali Patterson also gave the Bulldogs victories at the No. 3 and No. 5 spots, respectively.
After their match against South Dakota, the Bulldogs rounded out their four-game home stand against North Dakota. The Bulldogs were victorious by a score of 7-0, its first shut out of the season.
“They were not as strong of a team as we were expecting,” Demos said. “But we stuck to our game and did not take them lightly.”
Demos teamed up with Krizman in the doubles competition, and the pairing registered an 8-1 victory over the Fighting Sioux.
“Doubles is working really well, which has been tough for us in the past,” Demos said. “I’m excited to see how much we can improve the season.”
Demos also registered a victory in singles play, alongside senior Amanda Aragon, to push the Bulldog lead to 4-0. Boyd gave the Bulldogs their No. 4 spot victory, with a 6-1, 6-1 win. For the No. 1, No. 2 and No. 6 wins, the Bulldogs got help from Krizman, sophomore Klavdija Rebol and Patterson. The Bulldogs even stayed undefeated in terms of exhibition action, getting an 8-6 victory from freshman Amanda Dick.
“We all played very well [Friday] and finished all of our matches in about 2 and a half hours,” Boyd said. “I think that each day we are becoming a stronger team in all aspects.”
The Bulldogs are back in action this Friday and Saturday in Wisconsin, facing Green Bay and Milwaukee, respectively.
“I feel like we’re on a really good roll as a team right now,” Demos said. “That will be very helpful going into our tough upcoming weekend in Wisconsin.”
