Pilots Stumble on Opening Day at NCCAA Nationals
On the opening day of play at the 2017 NCCAA Women’s Tennis National Tournament, the Bethel Pilots dropped both of their matchups, falling to Colorado Christian 5-1 and NAIA No. 21 Campbellsville 5-0. The losses leave BC with a 0-2 record heading into the final day of pool play and drop their season record to 13-9.
The day opened for BC at 8:30 a.m. when the Pilots kicked off the national tournament with doubles action against Colorado Christian. BC landed their one win of the day in the number one doubles slot as Caroline Boger and Taylor Freedline downed Jenni Perkins and Carrie Alberson 8-4. CCU took the other two doubles duels and finished on top of the numbers two, three and six singles battles to claim the 5-1 win. The final three matches were left unfinished; however, each contest ended with Colorado Christian leading the respective BC opponent.
To close the day, the Pilots faced NAIA No. 21 Campbellsville and fell in five straight sets, including all three doubles matches and the numbers two and three singles matchups. In the number two doubles battle, Rachel Jennings and Abbey VanDiver put together an extremely competitive match, falling 9-7 to Kyleigh Murray and Brooklyn Harris. During singles play, Chase Kieper was able to overpower Harris in the number five position and led the match 6-1, 2-1 but was unable to finish as the Tigers picked up their five victories before the conclusion of their contest.
Pool play for the Pilots will conclude tomorrow when BC faces Oklahoma Baptist at 8:30 a.m.
