Close, But No Cigar for Syracuse Tennis
By Drew Albaugh | @Drew_Albaugh
This weekend was emblematic of Syracuse tennis over the past few years—two narrow defeats.
The Orange opened the weekend with a Friday afternoon match in Atlanta against Georgia Tech. Despite tying the score at 2-2 after dropping the doubles point, Syracuse lost the final two singles matches in a 4-2 defeat. On Sunday, the location changed, but the result remained the same in another 4-2 loss at Clemson.
The pair of defeats marked four straight losses for the Orange, all on the road. Syracuse is now 1-7 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The average margin in those ACC losses is just two points—the same as the doubles point swing. When the Orange wins the doubles point, they are a perfect 7-0. When they drop it, they are just 1-7, including 0-6 in the ACC.
The doubles struggles continued last weekend. Against both Georgia Tech and Clemson, Syracuse lost the doubles point 2-0. Head coach Younes Limam is well aware of the issue.
“It all starts with the doubles point,” Limam said.
Limam has shuffled the doubles lineup throughout the season. Against Clemson, senior Shiori Ito played in the No. 1 doubles spot for the first time alongside sophomore Nelly Knezkova. The switch did not translate to success, as the duo lost 6-3.
The doubles shake-up was not the only change Limam implemented. He also moved Knezkova into the No. 1 singles spot, replacing season-long top player Miyuka Kimoto. Kimoto started the season strong with a 5-1 singles record, including a top-10 win over Duke’s Irina Balus. However, she has since lost five of her last six matches, leading to the change against Georgia Tech.
It remains to be seen how long the adjustment will last. Against Clemson, Kimoto flashed her early-season form with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Amelie Smejkalova, the No. 30-ranked junior in the world. Meanwhile, Knezkova struggled in her first weekend as the No. 1 singles player, dropping both matches. Against the Tigers, she showed promise with a 7-5 win in the first set but lost 12 of the next 13 games.
After another tough weekend, Syracuse is now 1-3 this season and 3-7 over the past four seasons in matches decided by the final two points. If the Orange hope to find success in their final four matches, they will need to reverse that trend.
Syracuse returns home to face Virginia Tech on Friday at Drumlins. Start time is set for 3 p.m. Follow @Drew_Albaugh and @CitrusTVSports on X for live updates and postgame coverage.
