SWEET BRIAR, Va. - The Guilford College women's tennis team traveled to the Dennis Van Der Meer Tennis Center on Saturday to compete in the Battle of Blue Ridge Tournament hosted by Sweet Briar College, opening up their fall slate of competition.
 
Guilford was one of four division three teams competing in today's competition. Amongst those teams were Sweet Briar College, Piedmont University, and Washington College.
 
Erika Mendez and LaNiya Ward (Pittsburgh, PA) were the stars of the singles competition, securing wins for the Quakers. Mendez made her debut in today's competition securing her first collegiate victory, defeating Washington's Sofia Sperandei Mercedes. Securing a first set win of 6-1 and closing out the game with a 6-2 win in the second set. Ward started off strong in her collegiate debut, claiming a first set win by a tally of 6-1. Set two was a minor setback for the freshman as she gave up the second set by a narrow score of 4-6 before wrapping up the matchup by a score of 10-7 and securing her first collegiate win.
 
Guilford competed in a total of 13 singles contests on the day. Ashley Belnap (Winston-Salem, N.C.) , Chandler Sizemore (Sandy Ridge, N.C), Amy Soto Salgado, Bethany Lupo (Tabor City, N.C), and Jolie Nhouyvanisvong (Greensboro, N.C) made appearances in their respective matches with Sizemore and Salgado making their first collegiate appearances.
 
Guilford competed in six doubles matches, securing three total wins at the event. Salgado and Ward claimed a victory with a margin of 6-4 against Sweet Briar's Atty Bestwick and Ari Cope. Belnap and Mendez obtained a win of 6-4 versus WC's Eva Kading and Sofia Sperandei. Nhouyvanisvong and Sizemore squeezed a victory at the end of their match-up with a scoreline of 7-5 against Piedmont's Kameron London and Sarah Row, earning Sizemore's first collegiate win.
 
Guilford's season is just getting started as they travel to Winston-Salem, N.C to compete in the Salem Invitational on Sept. 22. Match time is set for 2 P.M.
 
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