BLACKSBURG, Va. – It's been quite a weekend for Longwood women's tennis.
 
Just two days after taking down Christopher Newport 6-3 in Friday's season opener, the Lancers stormed past Bluefield State 6-1 Sunday afternoon to open the 2019 spring season 2-0 for a second straight year.
 
Facing the West Virginia-based Big Blues on a neutral court at Virginia Tech's Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center, the Lancers nearly pulled off a singles sweep and took two of three doubles bouts for the second straight match. Longwood's five singles wins were all in straight sets, including a 7-6, 6-1 victory by junior Jamie Breunig in her spring debut at Longwood's No. 1 slot.
 
"Today we had to adapt to a faster court that made the ball come quicker than we're used to," said Medina Alvarez. "We made some adjustments to the lineup to maximize our potential knowing that Bluefield State had three players we needed to watch out for. Overall we played well, but I think we still need to be more aware of the construction of the game in order not to lose focus when it comes to winning key points."
 
Sunday's win over the Division II Big Blues featured victories at doubles Nos. 2 and 3 and in the top five singles spots, all in straight sets. Breunig led that charge with a 7-6, 6-1 win over No. 1 Eva Rubio, picking up her second straight victory after another straight-set victory as Longwood's No. 2 against Christopher Newport.
 
Breunig flipped singles positions with fellow returner Yulia Almiron, who made quick work of Eva Garcia 6-1, 6-1 at No. 2, as part of three Longwood victories in which the Lancers dropped just two sets or fewer.
 
Junior Marija Venta, playing No. 3 behind Breunig and Almiron to round out Longwood's top-tier veteran trio, took down Milicia Knezavic 6-1, 6-0, to pick up her second win of the year at that slot.

"Of course the wins were nice, but we are more focused on what we can get out of these matches to improve in the long run," Breunig said. "These past two matches helped us see the areas we need to continue improving on. We have reviewed our film, and we're excited to continue improving in our upcoming matches."
 
In their first spring under Longwood Director of Tennis Jhonnatan Medina Alvarez, who last year led Longwood's men to a 13-9 record and the Big South semifinals, the Lancers are now 9-3 overall in singles and 4-2 in doubles through opening weekend of the spring season. Breunig and Venta stayed unbeaten at 2-0, as did freshmen Anika Tylek and Emma Nurgazieva, who also won again Sunday.
 
Tylek, from Ontario, Canada, and Nurgazieva, from Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan , both joined Longwood in the fall and have made an immediate impact, both winning every set they played over opening weekend. Sunday that included a 6-3, 6-2 over Sophie Bygrave at No. 4 for Tylek, and a 6-1, 6-1 win over Milica Krnjaja for Nurgazieva at No. 5.
 
Those two freshmen were also part of two separate doubles wins, with Tylek pairing with Venta for a 6-2 win at No. 2, and Nurgazieva teaming up with redshirt freshman Crystal Nzewi for a 6-2 win at No. 3.
 
"In singles, I was happy with the performance overall because they fought hard, but we still need to be respectful of our game philosophy," Medina Alvarez said. "If we lose track of that, then we end up playing without purpose, and that leads to allowing our emotions to dictate how we play."
 
The Lancers will now get nearly a week-long break to prepare for their next match, which sends them to Murfreesboro, N.C., where they will face Chowan this Friday, Feb. 8, at 1 p.m.
 
Longwood 6, Bluefield State 1
Feb 03, 2019 at Blacksburg, Va. (Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center)
 
Singles competition
1. BREUNIG, Jamie (LWU) def. RUBIO, Eva (BSU) 7-6, 6-1
2. ALMIRON, Yulia (LWU) def. GARCIA, Eva (BSU) 6-1, 6-1
3. VENTA, Marija (LWU) def. KNEZAVIC, Milicia (BSU) 6-1, 6-0
4. TYLEK, Anika (LWU) def. BYGRAVE, Sophie (BSU) 6-3, 6-2
5. NURGAZIEVA, Emma (LWU) def. KRNJAJA, Milica (BSU) 6-1, 6-1
6. SA'EZ, Paula (BSU) def. NZEWI, Crystal (LWU) 6-2, 6-1
 
Doubles competition
1. GARCIA, Eva/RUBIO, Eva (BSU) def. ALMIRON, Yulia/BREUNIG, Jamie (LWU) 6-4
2. TYLEK, Anika/VENTA, Marija (LWU) def. BYGRAVE, Sophie/KNEZAVIC, Milicia (BSU) 6-2
3. NURGAZIEVA, Emma/NZEWI, Crystal (LWU) def. KRNJAJA, Milica/SA'EZ, Paula (BSU) 6-2
 
Match Notes
Bluefield State 4-4
Longwood 2-0
 
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