After cruising past Trinity on Tuesday 8-1, the Amherst women’s tennis team encountered their first real challenge of the season this past Saturday. The Jeffs faced No. 10-ranked Bowdoin in a nail-biting back-and-forth battle. Ultimately, the women in purple and white prevailed, defeating Bowdoin 5-4.

In singles action, first-year Vickie Ip handily defeated the Polar Bear’s Joulia Likhanskaia 6-4, 6-2 on court one. Jackie Calla ‘17 also picked up a win for Amherst, defeating Tess Trinka on court three. However, Bowdoin took the remaining singles courts, leaving Amherst fans on the edge of their seats.

It was the doubles courts that brought home the win for the Jeffs. Sue Gosh ’16 and Ip on court one marked the first doubles win for Amherst with a score of 8-4. With the same score, senior Safi Aly and junior Sarah Monteagudo were also victorious on court three, sending the Polar Bears back to Maine with their first NESCAC loss of the season.

With the win, Amherst is now 9-1 on the year and boasts a 3-0 record in the NESCAC. Currently, Amherst and Williams are the only undefeated teams in the conference. The teams will face off next Saturday, April 18 in Williamstown at 1 p.m.