This past weekend marked the end of the fall season for the women’s tennis team, as they head into a nine-week hiatus following their participation at the Eck Classic during the weekend in South Bend, Ind.

Facing a field of opponents from Western Michigan, Notre Dame, and DePaul, the promising performance by the team was highlighted by a 3-0 record from junior Momei Qu, who soundly defeated Kirsten Gambrell of DePaul in straight sets Sunday, 6-2, 6-0, to complete a sweep of her singles bracket.

“Momei Qu’s performance was definitely the most impressive this weekend,” head coach Michelle Dasso said. “She rolled this tournament. I was really happy to see her back in form.”

The team sought consistent improvement during the three-day tournament, and that’s exactly what it got. Sophomore Shivani Dav‚ finished the weekend with two hard-fought wins, while junior Alejandra Meza Cuadra collected a victory as well. Freshman Megan Fudge wrapped up her impressive fall, winning two out of her three singles matches.

“I was really impressed with our team chemistry this weekend,” Fudge said. “I think we really pulled together well as a team. We were there for each other and looking much sharper. Since the beginning of the year we’ve been making less mistakes and working the points better. I felt we were in better shape and ready to go.”

While the team did continue to show off its skills in singles play, doubles play still proved to be a daunting obstacle hindering the team’s ability to reach their full potential. Dasso was hoping for a better doubles performance at The Eck.

“Doubles play definitely still needs improvement,” Dasso said. “Other than Fudge and (Leigh) Finnegan, we’re still trying to juggle around the teams. It was just ugly this weekend. Doubles are a huge part of college tennis. If you don’t do well in them, then you need to win four singles matches, and that’s extremely hard to do.”

As for the weekend’s top performer, Qu knows exactly what her teammates need to succeed: confidence.

“There are people on the team who have the ability to do well, but doubted themselves this weekend,” Qu said. “If they believe that they are good enough and can beat people, then they’re definitely going to do well.”

January 20 marks the team’s first dual meet of the spring season as they head to Milwaukee, Wis. to face-off against Marquette University. For the team, the layoff is all about resting up, staying in shape, and concentrating on the importance of the approaching spring season. The upcoming weeks will also provide valuable healing time for senior Emily Wang and freshman Leigh Finnegan while they nurse nagging injuries.

Even during their time off, the team sees a chance to continue to improve their game and want to take full advantage of it.

“We need to be practicing together, playing sets against each other, and keeping up with our conditioning,” Fudge said. “We need to work out some of the weak points we have at the moment and just keep active and reach January where we are right now. Maybe even better.”