The Middlesex School Girls' Varsity Tennis team won its first ISL match of the season against St. Mark's 9 - 6 Saturday afternoon. Conditions were ideal with temperatures in the 60s and sunny skies overhead.

After getting out of the van, it took our players a bit to get into the match, and the team scored most of our points in the second sets. Senior captain Maud McCole led the Zebras singles lineup to win 7 out of 12 of the singles points. McCole's first set at #1 singles was tight and got pushed into a tiebreaker, which she won 7 - 2 with her characteristic positive thinking and steadiness. She then carried the positive momentum into the second to win 6 - 1. Marissa Fadely '22 also clinched both of her sets 6 - 2, 6 - 3 at #2. Neha Kommineni '22, Averill Emery '20, and Margaret Rand '19 all split sets in competitive matches at #3, #4, and #6 singles.

The match was 7 - 5 and still in contention going into doubles. Middlesex needed to secure one more point in order to win the match overall. The three doubles matches were fast paced and close, and at one point mid-matches, Middlesex was down on all courts. Rand and partner Jessie Andrews '21 stuck to a simple plan and managed to break their opponents to come back and win the set. At #2, Emery and Kommineni also came back working together as a team to clinch the final point for MX.