Owls host Kenyon Invitational to commence campaign

GAMBIER, Ohio — The Kenyon College women’s tennis team opened its 2023-24 campaign by hosting eight other teams for two days of play at the Owls’ annual Kenyon Invitational.

Kenyon’s three first-year players shined over the two-day event, compiling a combined 8-1 record in singles play and going undefeated in doubles action. Madeline Chappars and Lauren Dell’Acqua led the way for the Owls as they both started their collegiate careers with a 3-0 record in singles, and the duo paired up for three doubles victories. 

In three straight-set singles triumphs, Chappars won 6-0, 6-1 against Allegheny College’s Kayla Hay, 6-4, 6-2 over Oberlin College’s Amelia Bronfman, and 6-3, 7-6 against Allegheny’s Omega Ba. Dell’Acqua also did not drop a set in her singles bouts, winning 7-5, 6-3 over John Carroll University’s Felicity Kolb, 6-2, 6-3 against Allegheny’s Noelle Kidd, and 6-0, 6-0 over The College of Wooster’s Margaret Steward. As a doubles duo, Chappars and Dell’Acqua combined for wins of 8-0, 8-0, and 8-4.

Fellow first-year Ana Brand was not far behind her Owls teammates as she went 2-1 in singles and 3-0 in doubles. Brand began her inaugural intercollegiate campaign with two straight-set victories, winning 7-5, 6-3 over Carnegie Mellon University’s Ainika Hou and 6-4, 6-3 against Denison University’s Kendall Schrader. She nearly went 3-0 but came up just short in a competitive 6-7, 7-6, 10-8 loss against Case Western Reserve University’s Anna Kan.

In doubles, Brand paired with junior Natalie Connelly for three wins. The duo was nearly flawless across three wins, putting up scores of 8-0, 8-0, and 8-2. Connelly also went 2-1 in the singles circuit, bouncing back from an early 6-3, 6-3 loss to CWRU’s Ellior Rose with two wins. The junior bested CWRU’s Prachi Shah 4-6, 6-2, 10-7 before a 6-2, 6-2 win over Denison’s Maia Nowicki.

Four other Owls saw action over the weekend. Sophomore Shadia Amado Aguad saw the most singles success with a 2-1 record that included wins of 7-6, 4-6, 10-4 and 6-2, 6-0. Amado Aguad partnered with junior Lalasa Nagireddy to go 1-1 in doubles, a record that Nagireddy also posted in singles.

Senior Eleni Dakos posted a 1-1 singles record and a 1-2 doubles mark. Her doubles partner, sophomore Allaire Berl, was 1-2 in singles play after dropping a pair of highly competitive three-set decisions.

The Owls have one more outing on their schedule this fall. Kenyon is scheduled to head to Missouri from September 22-24 to play in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Central Region Championship, which is hosted by Washington University in St. Louis.