Bucknell (1-3, 0-1 PL) at Washington and Lee (4-0, 3-0 ODAC)
When: Friday, Feb. 2 – 4 p.m.
Where: Washington and Lee Outdoor Tennis Courts – Lexington, Va.
Bucknell (1-3, 0-1 PL) at Richmond (1-2, 0-0 A10)
When: Saturday, Feb. 3 – 3 p.m.
Where: Raintree Swim and Racquet Club – Richmond, Va.
Bucknell at a Glance
• Bucknell heads south for two duals in Virginia this weekend. The Bison will take on reigning Old Dominion Athletic Conference champion Washington and Lee on Friday. The Bison then visit the Atlantic 10’s Richmond Spiders on Saturday.
• Bucknell opened its spring schedule two weekends ago and went 1-1 on the road. The Bison fell 7-0 to 2023 Patriot League champion Boston U. before pulling off a 7-0 sweep over Binghamton.
• The Bison competed at three tournaments during the fall portion of their schedule before facing Findlay and Ferris State in duals to wrap up the semester. Bucknell excelled in each of its fall tournaments, going 54-21 in singles and 26-18 in doubles.
• Anna Lajos currently leads the Bison in singles wins with a 9-3 record. Whitney King and Abby Platt are Bucknell’s leading doubles team at 11-0. The pair went 15-4 in 2022-23, including a 6-0 mark in Patriot League play.
• Bucknell finished the 2022-23 campaign 13-13 (4-3 PL) and reached the Patriot League semifinal round for a second time under head coach Tammy Cecchini. The Bison defeated Colgate 4-0 in the quarterfinals for the program’s 500th all-time victory in what was the 50th season of Bucknell women’s tennis. At the end of the year, King was named to the All-Patriot League First Team and the Academic All-Patriot League Team.
• Bucknell returned all eight members of last spring’s roster and added two newcomers: Tori Allen and Jaycie Mair. The roster is comprised of three seniors, three juniors, two sophomores and the two rookies.
• Seniors Tyne Miller, Kate Novak and Madi Sebulsky are serving as team captains this season.
• Cecchini is in her fifth year leading the Bison. She owns a 37-34 record since arriving in Lewisburg.
Category Leaders
• Overall Singles Wins: Anna Lajos (9)
• Dual Match Singles Wins: Three tied (2)
• PL Dual Match Singles Wins: N/A
• Overall Doubles Wins: King and Platt (11)
• Dual Match Doubles Wins: King and Platt (2)
• PL Dual Match Doubles Wins: King and Platt (1)
A Look Back at the Boston/Binghamton Duals
• Whitney King and Abby Platt remained unbeaten against Patriot League teams as a doubles pair, defeating Boston’s No. 1 team 6-4. The Terriers went on to sweep the Bison in the remaining matches.
• Against the Bearcats, Bucknell won all three doubles matches and took all six singles in straight sets. Three Bison gave up just one game in their singles victories. King, Anna Lajos, Platt, Tyne Miller, Jaycie Mair and Mirra Manolov each earned singles wins.
• In doubles, Lajos and Caroline Marcus won 6-0 to open the match. King and Platt won 6-1 on court one, and Miller and Madi Sebulsky won 6-2 on court two.
Scouting Washington and Lee
• The Generals remain undefeated this season with wins over Virginia Wesleyan, Earlham College, Randolph College and Randolph-Macon College. They’ve outscored their opponents 35-1 in their four duals. The Generals also ended the fall semester at the Lehigh Invitational and ranked 29th in Division III.
• Washington and Lee sophomore Lauren Long earned ODAC Rookie of the Year laurels in 2023 and is among six Generals tied with five wins this year. The Generals returned three 2023 All-ODAC honorees this season.
• Washington and Lee is a perfect 12-0 in dual doubles this season. A loss at No. 1 singles against Randolph is the only point the team has surrendered.
• Generals head coach Erin Ness is in her 12th season leading the program. She’s a seven-time ODAC Coach of the Year and has led the team to 10 NCAA bids, including one in 2023. She boasts a 196-61 record.
• Bucknell won 6-3 over Washington and Lee last February. The Bison took four in singles and two of three in doubles. The Generals earned wins at No. 1 and No. 4 singles.
Scouting Richmond
• The Spiders are coming off their first win of the season, a 4-3 victory at home over Navy on Jan. 27, and previously fell at Georgetown and No. 12 Virginia.
• Richmond took two of three in doubles and three of six in singles to defeat the Midshipmen. Polina Shitikova, Lara Bakhaya and Lainey O’Neil each earned their first singles wins of the spring in the victory.
• Earning a doubles win against the Midshipmen was sophomore Elizabeth Novak, the younger sister of Bucknell senior captain Kate Novak. Elizabeth went 10-10 in singles last season as a rookie.
• Richmond went 10-15 (3-2 A10) in 2022-23 and reached the Atlantic 10 semifinals before falling to top-seeded VCU. Both of Richmond’s 2023 All-Atlantic 10 honorees, Andrea Campodonico and Leonor Oliveira, are back this season.
• The Bison last faced the Spiders in 2015, when Richmond won 5-2.
Up Next
• Bucknell hosts its first home dual of the spring semester when it faces Saint Francis at 5 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 9 at the Central PA Tennis Center in South Williamsport, Pa.