Longtime Wichita State women’s tennis coach Colin Foster might have had flashbacks to the early 2010s with former Missouri Valley Conference rivals Creighton and Drake on the schedule over the weekend.

The Shockers took care of business, beating both teams with a 5-2 scoreline.

Saturday

On Saturday, Jan. 20, Wichita State took on Creighton on the road and delivered their 19th consecutive win against the Blue Jays.

The doubles point was easily won by the Shockers. Freshman Xin Tong Wang and senior Natsumi Kurahashi on court two and sophomore Theodora Chantava and freshman Giorgia Roselli on court three easily breezed past their opponents with 6-1 wins.

Singles play started just as well for Wichita State, as the first four matches to finish all went the Shockers’ way. Chantava, sophomore Kristina Kudryavtseva, Kurahashi and graduate student Jessica Anzo each won their matches without losing a set.

The remaining two singles matches resulted in tough defeats for Wichita State. On the first court, Wang won the first set, 6-4 but dropped the second by the same scoreline. The tiebreaker set was extended to 20 points before Wang was eventually defeated, 11-9, to lose the match.

On the fourth court, freshman Anne Knuettel’s match followed a similar script. She won the first set, 6-1, dropped the second, 6-3 and lost the final set, 6-2 

Despite the late losses, the early dominance for the Shockers had long since secured the overall result.

Sunday

Wichita State traveled to Des Moines, Iowa, to take on Drake on Sunday, Jan. 21. In a similar fate to Creighton, the Shockers’ win continued a history of dominance against the Bulldogs. It was the 19th win for Wichita State in the past 20 matches.

Wichita State quickly took the doubles point. Knuettel and Kudryavtseva won their match, 6-4. Roselli and Chantava won every game on the third court.

Like the Creighton match the previous day, the Shockers quickly secured the overall result against Drake with some early wins but suffered a few defeats later on.

Knuettel’s match on the third court was the first to finish. She won in two sets without losing a single game.

Chantava, Roselli and Anzo all also won their matches fast, sweeping in two sets. On the first court, Kurahashi was bested in 6-1 and 6-2 sets.

The only match to go a full three sets was contested by Kudryavtseva on court two. She won the first set, 6-3, but dropped the second, 6-4, and the deciding set, 6-2.

The women’s tennis team is now 2-1 on the season. The team continues their young 2024 campaign on Friday, Jan. 26 at the Wichita Country Club against Kansas State University.