Belles place second in MIAA tournament
By KATIE McVOY
Assistant Sports Editor
Led by seniors Katie Vales, Becky Kremer and Leslie Ortiz, the Saint Mary's tennis team finished a very successful season by placing second in the MIAA tournament and tying for a second place overall finish.
The Belles came in just behind the Hope College Flying Dutch in the tournament finals.
Kremer led the team in the tournament winning the No. 4 singles championship and, with teammate Natalie Cook, the No. 2 doubles championship.
Kremer, who was cut from the team as a freshman, played consistent No. 4 singles and No. 2 doubles this year and won the Saint Mary's Senior Athlete Improvement Award. She finished with a record of 6-1 in No. 3 singles, a 11-0 No. 4 singles record, 2-0 in No. 1 doubles record, and 11-4 in No. 2 doubles.
Joining Kremer was Vales, the No. 1 singles and No. 1 doubles player who was named to the All-MIAA First Team, her third time on an all-conference squad.
Vales posted an impressive 13-5 No. 1 singles record and marked 10 No. 1 doubles wins against seven losses. Vales received the Outstanding Senior Athlete Award at the athletic banquet.
Although Ortiz was not able to compete as often as Vales and Kremer, she led the team in spirit and managed to post good numbers for the Belles. Ortiz won all seven of the doubles matches she played in and lost just one match all season in No. 1 singles.
The Belles finished the regular season with a 17-5 overall record and 5-2 in the conference. They topped off the season with a 9-0 victory over Division I foe Valparaiso.
Saint Mary's beat all of its league competition except for Hope and an upset loss to Calvin. But the Belles got their revenge in the in the conference tournament, beating the Knights to earn a second place finish.
The Belles started their season off with a 7-0 spring break trip. They then returned to Saint Mary's for a 9-1 run, with their only loss coming against top-ranked Hope. After 16 games, the Belles' record stood at 15-1, but then they dropped a match to Calvin, and four of their next five games. The Belles came back with the victory over the Valpo Crusaders to end the regular season on a high note.
All Sports Stories for Friday, May 19, 2000
