Tennis

Miranda Ramirez the lone bright spot in Syracuse’s 6-1 loss to Brown

Courtesy of SU Athletics

Freshman Miranda Ramirez thrived in third singles on Sunday, getting Syracuse's lone point.

Two points in a row, Miranda Ramirez attacked the net and won points with forehand smashes. That put her up 3-2 in the second set of her singles match, which she went on to win. Around her, Syracuse struggled to muster much of a fight.

The Orange (2-5, 0-1 Atlantic Coast) dropped six of seven possible points on Saturday, losing to Brown (4-1), 6-1. At third singles, Ramirez earned Syracuse’s only point in her defeat of Maddie Stearns, 7-5, 6-3.

While Dayna Lord overpowered Anna Shkudun on court 3, and Dina Hegab struggled on court 1, Ramirez remained focused on her match on court 2 and won her second singles match of the weekend.

Ramirez’s day began in the third doubles match. She and Dina Hegab fell to Brown’s Devon Jack and Juliana Simon, 7-6 (7-5). Ramirez protected her serve to make it 5-4 in the match, but some timely serving from Jack and Hegab’s unforced errors lost the match. It gave the doubles point to Brown and put Syracuse in an early 1-0 hole. Syracuse wouldn’t find much success in singles, save for Ramirez.

“I thought we had a great doubles match,” Ramirez said. “Even though we lost, I still gained some confidence from it. For me, changing to singles, I still felt good. Still felt like I was playing well.”



Ramirez adjusted throughout her singles match. She explained she read how Stearns played, whether aggressive or defensive, and reacted accordingly.

Ramirez warded off long rallies from her opponent with her one-handed backhand, and more often than not, Stearns made an error to end the point. Once Ramirez sensed Stearns on her back foot, she attacked the net and put the point away. Regardless of the tactic her opponent chose, Ramirez countered it.

“She (Miranda) is a fearless competitor,” SU head coach Younes Limam said. “She plays with a lot of heart and she’s also very talented. That’s a good combination.”





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