Bulldogs open Spring Break with tough losses to Radford, East Carolina

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University women's tennis team dropped its first two matches of its Spring Break trip, falling to Radford on Tuesday and East Carolina on Wednesday, in sunny Orlando, Fla.

In their first outdoor match since October, the Bulldogs fought hard but came up short against a solid Radford team, 6-1, on Tuesday. After taking the doubles point, the Highlanders went on to take the next five singles matches despite close scores across the board.

Sophomore Briana Leonard (Westford, Mass.) and freshman Ashanti Campfield (Stratford, Conn.) each pushed their battles to three sets, but came up just short at No. 3 and No. 6 singles, respectively.

Bryant's lone win came at No. 1 singles when sophomore Ryan Brown (Austin, Texas) knocked off Radford's Natalie Sayer in straight-sets, 7-5, 6-4, in the final match of the day.

On Wednesday, the Bulldogs came up short once again, this time dropping a 4-1 decision to East Carolina.

The Pirates took the doubles point with wins at No. 2 and 3 despite Bryant's slight lead at the No. 1 position. In singles play, sophomore Marion Bouillin (San Diego, Calif.) captured the lone Bryant point with a 4-6, 6-2, (10-2) win over ECU's Sarah Sarjoo at the No. 2 spot. After dropping the first set, Bouillin remained poised and focused taking the second set with ease, 6-2, before riding the momentum to a 10-2 tiebreak victory for the point.

Looking ahead, the Black and Gold will look to end its week in Orlando on a high note when they battle South Dakota on Thursday.