GRANTHAM, Pa. – Mother nature finally cooperated enough to allow Penn State Harrisburg's women's tennis team to open the spring portion of its 2022-23 season on Tuesday afternoon. The Lions fell at Messiah by a 6-3 margin.
Penn State Harrisburg top doubles pair of Breanna DeSantis and Olivia Bandini rolled to an 8-2 victory over the Falcons' top team of Kasi Conjack and Isabella Heckman, while Sarah Shaub and Gabrielle Sabatose were narrowly edged 8-7 (7-3) by Messiah's Rebekah Sheaffer and Kylie Walker in a back-and-forth No. 2 contest.
Bandini kept rolling in singles action and came away with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Conjack in the No. 1 solo matchup, while DeSantis was excellent in the No. 2 match, breezing her way to a 6-0, 6-0 sweep of Heckman. Sabatose nearly emerged with a singles victory in the third contest but was narrowly clipped by Sheaffer, falling 6-4, 5-7, 6-10 in a tightly-contested three-setter.
The Lions (2-3) will look to bounce back when they return to action at Kutztown, an NCAA Division III opponent, on Thursday afternoon. First serve is set for 3 p.m.
Fans can keep up with Penn State Harrisburg Athletics all season long on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Youtube using the handle @pshbgathletics.