July 7, 2009

PHILADELPHIA - Progress was the key for the 2008-09 season as the Saint Joseph's women's tennis program welcomed new head coach Ian Crookenden. A two-time national champion at UCLA, Crookenden was appointed director of tennis in August and began molding the program to a more competitive, year-round schedule.

Leading the way for the Hawks were senior Krysta Contino, junior Jennifer Kedzierski, sophomore Maggie Mullaney and freshman Laura Matz. The four combined to earn 44 of SJU's 56 singles victories.

The Hawks opened the season at the Towson 4+1Invitational, and while there was no team scoring, Contino and freshman Melissa Glick started the year in good form with each recording singles victories.

Opening dual matches versus Villanova, Saint Joseph's got a win at No. 1 singles by Kedzierski, but the Hawks couldn't earn another point over the remaining matches despite highly-contested sets.

Saint Joseph's would rebound for its 1st win of the season with a 6-1 win over Rider at home, winning five singles points and the doubles' point.

Hitting a more challenging portion of their schedule, the Hawks would drop their next five matches but got back in the win column at La Salle. Saint Joseph's swept all six singles matches and blanked the Explorers in all three doubles matches for SJU's first shutout of the season.

The fall portion of the schedule came to a close as the Hawks dropped a heart-breaking 4-3 decision to Delaware State before topping Lafayette, 6-1, to end the fall season with a 3-7 mark.

After a four-month break from competition, Saint Joseph's returned to the court at the end of February versus Drexel. And while the Hawks added newcomer Sally Kalani Stainier to the lineup, the Dragons proved spoilers, topping SJU, 7-0.

Saint Joseph's annual Spring Break trip started with a 7-0 win over South Dakota, but minor injuries played havoc on Crookenden's lineup as the Hawks would drop the remaining four contests in Orlando.

Returning to Philadelphia, Saint Joseph's dropped its second 4-3 match of the year, this time to Kutztown and had its losing streak extended to six after a challenging match at one of the top teams in the Atlantic 10, Temple.

The Hawks rebounded though, posting consecutive wins over Saint Peter's and West Chester, but a 7-0 loss to Fordham capped the regular season portion of the schedule for SJU.

Posting a 6-15 mark during the season, Saint Joseph's was seeded 12th at the 2009 Atlantic 10 Championship. Despite receiving solid efforts from Kedzierski, Matz and Stainier, the fifth-seeded Charlotte 49ers proved too much for SJU, relegating the Hawks to the loser's bracket with a 4-0 loss.

Even though their chance for a conference crown was gone, the Hawks persevered and were dominant against St. Bonaventure. Saint Joseph's quickly earned the doubles point as the pairs of Kedzierski and Matz; and Stainier and sophomore Katy Borden each won their matches.

Switching to singles competition, Matz, Contino and Borden were all two-set winners, while the other three matches were in hand for SJU when play was called.

Ninth place was on the line when the Hawks squared off against George Washington. And while Saint Joseph's posted another gutsy effort, the higher-seeded Colonials were too much, ending SJU's season with a 4-0 loss to finish tied for 11th.

And despite the loss, it was a successful season for the Hawks under first-year head coach Ian Crookenden. Contino finished the all-time leader in wins at No. 5 singles, while Kedzierski has established herself as one of the top players in SJU history, accumulating 35 career wins for third all-time.

With an experienced core of letterwinners returning and a talented class of newcomers, the Saint Joseph's women's tennis program will be on the rise.