Spring Break
The Daily OrangeTennis | Bramante's win helps Syracuse complete weekend sweep
By Drew Stal
Posted: 2/27/06, 1:35 AM EST Section: Sports
In each of the matches this weekend for the Syracuse tennis team, Katie Bramante was playing in the last match left that mattered. While she lost on Friday and the team still won, it prepared her for Sunday when the team needed her to win.
Although the Orange had already sealed the victory against Army, leading 5-1 at that point, there was no pressure on Bramante. Her teammates merely cheered and waited for her to join them in victory. It did not matter Bramante lost her match in a third-set tie-breaker, the match capped off an impressive 5-2 victory for the Orange before playing its biggest rival, Cornell.
The Orange was up 4-2 against the Big Red with two matches left to play as the team entered the same scenario as Friday night. The team watched as Bramante battled through her match, winning the first set, 7-5, and gaining a 5-2 lead. The atmosphere was different, for with a Bramante win, the team would clinch the overall victory. With the chance to put the match away, Bramante fought hard, breaking her opponent's serve in eight deuce points to win the second set, 6-2.
"I was definitely really focused (Sunday)," Bramante said. "(Tamara John) had a tough serve, and going through my head I was thinking, 'Just get it back and anything short, just put it away.' The more the match went on, the more aggressive and pumped up I got. She was definitely a good player. I wasn't able to play my game today because she hit the ball really hard, and I had to be defensive for a while."
With the match on the line, Bramante's teammates were confident in her abilities and knew Bramante would come through.
"I knew Katie had it," said senior Wei-Ming Leong. "If this team was to play another team and they could only elect one player to decide the match, it would be Katie. Katie has such a big heart. I looked in her eyes and I knew she had it. I wasn't even nervous about Katie's match at all."
Head coach Mac Gifford was impressed with Bramante's focus and determination to fight through anything.
Although the Orange had already sealed the victory against Army, leading 5-1 at that point, there was no pressure on Bramante. Her teammates merely cheered and waited for her to join them in victory. It did not matter Bramante lost her match in a third-set tie-breaker, the match capped off an impressive 5-2 victory for the Orange before playing its biggest rival, Cornell.
The Orange was up 4-2 against the Big Red with two matches left to play as the team entered the same scenario as Friday night. The team watched as Bramante battled through her match, winning the first set, 7-5, and gaining a 5-2 lead. The atmosphere was different, for with a Bramante win, the team would clinch the overall victory. With the chance to put the match away, Bramante fought hard, breaking her opponent's serve in eight deuce points to win the second set, 6-2.
"I was definitely really focused (Sunday)," Bramante said. "(Tamara John) had a tough serve, and going through my head I was thinking, 'Just get it back and anything short, just put it away.' The more the match went on, the more aggressive and pumped up I got. She was definitely a good player. I wasn't able to play my game today because she hit the ball really hard, and I had to be defensive for a while."
With the match on the line, Bramante's teammates were confident in her abilities and knew Bramante would come through.
"I knew Katie had it," said senior Wei-Ming Leong. "If this team was to play another team and they could only elect one player to decide the match, it would be Katie. Katie has such a big heart. I looked in her eyes and I knew she had it. I wasn't even nervous about Katie's match at all."
Head coach Mac Gifford was impressed with Bramante's focus and determination to fight through anything.
