The women’s tennis team continued their hot streak to win their sixth consecutive match on March 5 against Henderson State University at the Harding Tennis Courts. The Lady Bisons defeated the Reddies 7-0 and are now 9-1 this season.
All three doubles teams quickly proved their dominance over the Reddies and took the doubles point. Junior Rylie Cox and senior Arisa Takanashi started off the string of victories with a 6-0 win.
“I’d say we had a lot of energy going out there,” Cox said. “We were consistent and didn’t go for too much, so we just let them make all the errors.”
Sophomore Hana Folse and freshman Lindy Carpenter used their opponents’ weak spots to their advantage and won 6-2. They were followed closely by freshmen Emily and Allison Carpenter and their 6-4 win.
Each player then went on to win their singles matches to push the Lady Bisons to their 7-0 victory.
Harding Women’s Tennis Head Coach David Redding and assistant coach Brandon Hogland expect the Lady Bisons to be one of the top teams in the conference this year.
“We’re making a statement and we’re looking forward to getting on with the second half of the season,” Redding said.
However, the Lady Bisons are playing for more than just wins this season. In February, Hogland’s father Wally had a heart attack while watching a match and died later that month.
“Every match we play is in his memory,” Redding said. “Whatever our record is is secondary to the fact that we’re playing in his honor.”
The team has decided to dedicate the remainder of the season to Wally. As a part of their tribute to him, players hold a banner that says “Won One for Wally” at the end of every match.
The Lady Bisons have another chance to win at home and add to their winning streak March 10 at 2 p.m. in Searcy against Abilene Christian University.
