McCarthy, Kigugu lead Panthers to LEC win

            PLYMOUTH, N.H. – The Plymouth State University women's tennis team swept all three doubles matches, then got solid performances from freshman Maggie McCarthy (Marion, Mass.) and junior Irene Kigugu (Concord, N.H.) at No. 1 and No. 2 singles to roll past the University of Southern Maine, 8-1, in a Little East Conference match at the Holderness School Courts on Tuesday.

            McCarthy and Kigugu teamed up to win at No. 1 doubles in convincing fashion, 8-1, setting the tone early for the Panthers. Junior Megan Wheeler (Manchester, N.H.) and sophomore Alex Dunn (Jaffrey, N.H.) followed with an 8-4 win at No. 2 doubles, before the freshmen tandem of Jenna Sundquist (Monument Beach, Mass.) and Chloe Knapp (Jamestown, N.Y.) made it a clean sweep of the doubles round with an 8-2 win at No. 3.

            "Our doubles matches were solid today," praised head coach Barbara Rawlsky-Willett. "Maggie [McCarthy] and Irene [Kigugu] played well at the No. 1 and No. 2 singles positions too," she added.

            McCarthy earned her second win of the night after posting a straight sets victory over junior Courtney Jordan (Portland, Maine), by identical 6-1, 6-1 scores. Kigugu, Sundquist, Knapp and Wheeler all also won twice for the Panthers. Kigugu posted a 6-4, 6-1 win at No. 2 singles, with Sundquist (6-0, 6-1), Knapp (6-3, 6-2) and Wheeler (6-1, 6-2) winning at No. 4, No. 5 and No. 6 singles respectively.

            With the win the Panthers improve to 6-3 (3-2 LEC) and PSU has now won 13-of-14 dual matches against the Huskies dating back to 2004. USM falls to 2-5 (0-5 LEC).

            PSU will be back in action on Saturday when the Panthers host UMass Boston for an LEC match at the Holderness Courts. First serve is set for 1:00 p.m.

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