Women's tennis handles BVU, 8-1

STORM LAKE, Iowa – Sending a lineup consisting of three freshman, two sophomores and a junior to the court for the season's first competition, the Simpson women's tennis team showed little sign of inexperience in an 8-1 win at Buena Vista on Wednesday.

"It was a great way to start our season," head coach Lindsay Chase said. "With such a young team, it was important for us to get some nerves out of the way."

Simpson took all three doubles matches to lead off the day, going 8-3, 8-1 and 8-1 over the Beavers.

In singles it was more of the same, as junior Jill Berner (Albia, Iowa) set the pace at No. 1 singles with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Emily Gutschenritter. Mikayla Struebing (Indianola, Iowa), Allison Anderson (Eldridge, Iowa), Lynae Gruber (Shenandoah, Iowa) and Lindsay Nash (Keokuk, Iowa) also recorded favorable results.

The win marks Simpson's 22nd consecutive victory over the Beavers, a streak that began in 1997.

Simpson returns to action Sept. 5 in its home opener, as Grinnell and Graceland travel to the Bill and Nancy Buxton Tennis Courts. The Storm will face Grinnell at 9:30 a.m. and Graceland at 3:30 p.m.