Panther Women Blank Grossmont to Start Spring Trip

Emily Bian clinched the match on Sunday at No. 6 singles against Grossmont.

Fourth-ranked Middlebury began its spring trip to California with a convincing 9-0 victory over Grossmont on Sunday in El Cajon, California. The Panthers improve to 4-0 with the win, while the Griffins, a junior college, fall to 13-4. Middlebury returns to action on Monday with a 4:30 p.m. match at Azusa Pacific.

Middlebury started things off notching all three points during doubles play. The No. 2 tandem of Catherine Blazye and Maddi Stow posted an 8-0 victory over Madelein Liljekvist and Alycia Franklin. The Panther team of Heather Boehm and Christina Puccinelli eased past Jessica Blanco and Jillian Kan by an 8-0 score in the third spot, while the No. 1 pair of Katherine Hughes and Skylar Schossberger claimed an 8-0 victory over Alexia Mercer and Amanda DiGiovanni.

In singles, the Panthers dropped a combined two games during the six matches. Boehm breezed by Liljekvist at No. 3 (6-0, 6-0), while Emily Bian followed suit and clinched the match with a 6-0, 6-0 victory in the sixth spot over Kan.

Molly Paradies kept things rolling with 6-0, 6-0 win at No. 5 against Blanco, while Hughes eased to a 6-0, 6-0 victory in the top spot against Mercer. Puccinelli was a 6-0, 6-1 winner over Franklin at No. 2, while Schossberger completed the sweep with a 6-1, 6-0 triumph against Lauren Sandoval in the fourth flight.