FREDERICK, Md. – Backed by a combined nine singles wins, including two each from juniors Paloma Alatorre and Maria Coronel and freshman Alex Brown, the Longwood women's tennis team swept a Sunday doubleheader, 4-3 over Mount St. Mary's and 6-0 over La Salle, at the Mount St. Mary's Tennis Courts.
 
Those three Lancers stepped up in the absence of Lancer No. 2 Anna Pelak to win both of their respective singles bouts in straight sets. The Lancers won 11 of their 15 bouts overall, including a singles sweep in the 6-0 win over La Salle.
 
Alatorre played at both the No. 2 and No. 3 spots, upending Mount St. Mary's  No. 3 Erin Benefiel 6-4, 6-1 in the first match of the day and La Salle No. 2 Alexandra Santerelli 6-4, 6-1 in the afternoon session. Coronel, meanwhile, went a perfect 3-0 on the day with a doubles win at No. 3 alongside freshman Tess Willis against Mount St. Mary's and No. 4 singles victories against Mount St. Mary's Elizabeth Veronis 6-1, 6-1, and La Salle's Sam Liney 6-0, 6-0.
 
"This was a good way to end our competitive fall season, but there's still a lot of work to get done before we play Richmond in January," said second-year Longwood head coach Bruce Myers.
 
"The positives from the fall came from Anna and Paloma, who improved throughout. Maria has stepped up after offseason knee surgery and is playing her best tennis ever. Our depth allows me to be more creative with our lineup."
 
Myers tweaked his singles and doubles rotations throughout the day, deploying both lineups absent junior No. 2 Anna Pelak. Junior Mason Thomas occupied her singles slot in the first bout of the day, while Alatorre stepped up in the second match.
 
"We wanted to see our freshmen in action today, so we gave Anna a day off. These were their first duals matches, so they were a bit nervous, as expected."
 
Despite the nerves, Brown took down both opponents at the No. 5 spot, opening her day with a 6-2, 7-5 win over Mount St. Mary's freshman Emma Blake and capping it with a near-sweep of La Salle sophomore Kathryn Thomas, 6-0, 6-1.
 
Every freshman in the Lancer lineup picked up at least one win, beginning at the No. 1 singles spot where newcomer Fallon Burger avenged a three-set loss to Mount St. Mary's with a three-set win over La Salle ace Jade Smith. Alex Brown and Willis also picked up a doubles win and a singles win each at the No. 2 and 3 doubles and No. 5 and 6 singles spots, respectively.
 
The double header sweep caps the 2015 fall season for the Lancers, who now have three months to prepare for the spring over at Richmond on Jan. 22.
 
#GoWood
 
Longwood 4, Mount St. Mary's 3
October 25, 2015
Frederick, Md. (Mount St. Mary's Tennis Courts)
 
Doubles
No. 1: Kelly Smith/Erin Benefiel (MSM) def. Fallon Burger/Paloma Alatorre 8-6
No. 2: Mason Thomas/Alex Brown (LWU) def. Brittany Poje/Emma Blake 8-5
No. 3: Maria Coronel/Tess Willis (LWU) def. Elizabeth Veronis/Isabella Draper 8-7 (3)
 
Singles
No. 1: Berittany Poje (MSM) def. Fallon Burger 7-5, 4-6, 1-0 (6)
No. 2: Kelly Smith (MSM) def. Mason Thomas 6-1, 6-4
No. 3 Paloma Alatorre (LWU) def. Erin Benefiel 6-4, 6-1
No. 4: Maria Coronel (LWU) def. Elizabeth Veronis 6-1, 6-1
No. 5: Alex Brown (LWU) def. Emma Blake 6-2, 7-5
No. 6: Isabella Draper (MSM) def. Daniela Diez 3-6, 6-3, 1-0 (9)
 
Longwood 6, La Salle 0
October 25, 2015
Frederick, Md. (Mount St. Mary's Tennis Courts)
 
Doubles
No doubles matches
 
Singles
No. 1: Fallon Burger (LWU) def. Jade Smith 5-7, 6-2
No. 2: Paloma Alatorre (LWU) def. Alexandra Santerelli 6-4, 6-1
No. 3: Mason Thomas (LWU) def. Jayla Smith 6-3, 6-0
No. 4. Maria Coronel (LWU) def. Sam Liney 6-0, 6-0
No. 5: Alex Brown (LWU) def. Kathryn Thomas 6-0, 6-1
No. 6: Tess Willis (LWU) def. Madison Gillen 6-0, 6-0
 
#GoWood