By Catherine Laroche

After having a rough start due to injuries at the beginning of the season, the University of Louisville women’s tennis team is finally healthy and it’s starting to show.

Last week the Cards took down Kansas University 5-2 and No. 68 University of Missouri 4-3 before falling to Virginia Tech 5-2.

“Those were two of the best team performances,” head coach Greg Davis said. “Especially in singles and two matches back-to-back on the road. I thought those two matches made the difference for us.”

Against the Kansas Jayhawks, U of L took the doubles point when sophomores Natalia Baez and Bianca Gorbea got a win at the No. 2 spot, while freshman Jo-Ann Van Aerde teamed up with senior Natalie Laszkowski to take down KU’s Kunigunda Dorn and Stephanie Smith 8-2.

In singles action, Gorbea scored first with a 6-3, 6-0 win over Yuliana Svistum at No. 4. Van Aerde completed her day with a three-set victory over Smith, winning 6-3, 6-1, 6-1, to force the lead 4-0. The Cards then won No. 6 singles by default. Freshman Lauren Imre secured her match over Dorn in a three-setter, dropping the first 6-2, but making a comeback to win 7-5 and 6-1.

Shortly after the match, Louisville traveled to Columbia, Mo. to take on No. 68 Missouri.

The match started with Louisville’s Imre and junior Robyn White defeating Raquel Wagner and Katelyn McKenzie 8-4 in Louisville’s only doubles win.

After being down 1-0, the Cards weren’t ready to give up. Gorbea assisted U of L with their first point after a 6-4, 6-0 win over Kaitlin Dunham at the No. 4 spot. Laszkowski was next to add to the score after sailing past Erika Josbena 6-3, 6-3 at the No. 2 spot. White put the Cards ahead 3-1 with a 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 win at No. 3 over Chrissy Svetic. Imre carried the Cardinals to 3-1 with a 6-3, 5-7, 7-5 win over Amanda Pratzel at the No.1 seed to seal the 4-3 win over Mizzou.

“I thought our first two wins were real good,” White said. “I think we played exceptionally well, being on the road. I’m really excited about how the girls are playing.”

The Cardinals then stopped in Blacksburg, Va., to try to continue their winning streak before falling 5-2 to Virginia Tech.

Louisville won two of three doubles matches to put the first point on the board, but the Hokies came fighting back in singles play.

In doubles, Laszkowski and Van Aerde came up with an 8-5 win after battling Jessica Brouwer and Ashley James at the No. 3 spot, while Baez and Gorbea clinched the doubles with an 8-6 win over Jessica Long and Abbey Walker.

“We had opportunities,” Davis said. “We played very good doubles. I think it gave us some momentum, but we immediately gave back the momentum on the first six singles matches. That really dug us a hole in that match.”

Next up for the Cards is Marshall University on March 31, in Huntington, W. Va.