CONWAY, Ark. -- In the same weekend, the John Brown University women's tennis team not only broke an 18-match losing skid dating back to 2020, but the Golden Eagles wrapped up a pair of wins over in-state NCAA III opponents Hendrix (Ark.) and Ozarks (Ark.) this past weekend (Feb. 11-12) inside the Hatcher Tennis Center.
On Friday, the Golden Eagles (2-2) had to lean on freshman Ellie Swan's sixth-set win to pull out a 5-4 come-from-behind decision versus host Hendrix before cruising to a 9-0 humbling of Ozarks in the weekend finale.
Against Hendrix, freshman Erin Kuykendall and sophomore Caroline Hillock each battled back to force a third set after dropping the first at the second and fourth flights, respectively. Both found redemption in the tiebreaker, 10-8, and started a run that allowed John Brown to rally from a 4-1 deficit to clinch its first win in 715 days.
Junior Havynn Prude bested Avery Stephens, 6-3, 6-2, before Swan finished off Taylor Harbin by a pair of 6-4 scores to finish the 4-0 comeback run. Senior Sydney Smith and sophomore Abigail Woodring teamed up to easily take out the Warriors' top pair of Eleanor Burks and Greer Ayers in doubles action, 8-2.
"This has to be one of the best weekends in a number of years for the women's tennis program," admitted head coach Mike Campbell. "For a team that hadn't won a match in two years to come into a weekend – after struggling with bad weather and limited practice time – and finish 2-0 is a huge huge deal. We now have a team that believes they can win."
In Saturday's romp over Ozarks, the only drama the Eagles were able to provide John Brown was at the fourth singles flight. JBU easily swept through doubles play and held a commanding lead, but after Hillock ran away with a 6-0 first set win, Anna Ryan returned a 6-4 score, setting up the tiebreak. The Golden Eagles improved to 3-1 in tiebreak sets on the weekend as Hillock won it via a 10-8 score.
Hillock, Kuykendall and Swan all improved to 2-2 in singles action, while Woodring and Smith each picked up their first singles victories of the season.
The Golden Eagles return to the courts on Thursday (Feb. 17) when it welcomes Sterling (Kan.) to Siloam Springs for a 2 p.m. first serve.
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