LOS ANGELES – Senior Stephanie Bengson completed a career achievement, gave a commendable, gutsy effort, and experienced a nightmarish team downside – all in three arduous hours.
Bengson, along with junior Hannah Grady, won the team’s only doubles match with a big victory over No. 43-ranked Julia Bauregger and Mallory Voelker, but the No. 41-ranked Long Beach State women’s tennis team lost the other two doubles matches and dropped three more singles points to fall to the No. 28-ranked Denver Pioneers 4-0 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at UCLA in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Westwood.
Bengson’s doubles win with Grady gave the “Banger” the LBSU career record in combined wins with 148, passing Sandra Rocha (147). However, Bengson’s glory would be short-lived when she faced Denver’s Annette Aksdal in the No. 2 match.
Trailing 5-2 in the first set, Bengson tweaked her back after an unsuccessful hit. The senior took 10 minutes to have her back stretched out by a UCLA trainer, but she would never be the same for the rest of the match. Bengson had trouble keeping pace on the court and ended up dropping consecutive sets to a fresher Aksdal 6-2, 6-4 to give the Pioneers a 2-0 point advantage.
Grady, meanwhile, had her own troubles with the 70th-ranked Voelker in the No. 1 match.
The Big West Player of the Year dropped the first set to Voelker and was visibly frustrated throughout the match. Things would look worse for Grady in the second set when Voelker stormed to a 5-2 game advantage, but the junior from England made a furious four-game rally to take a 6-5 lead.
Before Grady could get any more momentum, everything came crashing down on the 49ers (19-7) and their 2008 season.
A loss for freshman Lisa Sutton to the Pioneers’ Bhamani Tirumurti (6-3, 6-4) in the No. 6 spot was followed by a heartbreaking loss for Big West Freshman of the Year Stephanie Jeanes, who dropped consecutive sets to Denver’s Kyla Iwinski in the No. 4 spot and lost 5-7, 6-3 and 6-1. Jeanes’ loss – unfortunately for LBSU – clinched the match for the Pioneers (23-2), leaving an emotional 49er squad in disarray.
Head coach Jenny Hilt-Costello said she was disappointed with the loss, but direct with the reasons why the 49ers lost.
“[Next season], I think we need to focus on our doubles play,” Hilt-Costello said. “They were a little better on the two and three positions.”
In the other doubles matches, Jeanes and junior Jessica Weeks fell to Denver’s Iwinski and Ute Schnoy 8-2, while the freshman tandem of Sutton and Deborah Armstrong lost to Aksdal and Tirumurti 8-3. The 49ers’ doubles play was efficient throughout the season, taking 12 consecutive doubles points and 20 overall this season. But the usual success wasn’t there at the Los Angeles Tennis Court and Hilt-Costello attributed that to a lack of experience.
“We had four freshmen, two of which just showed up after the fall,” Hilt-Costello said. “Having this match under their belt will help them next year.”
Despite the freshmen battling for the first time in NCAA Tournament play, The Beach managed to make sure Denver earned its way to the next round through the play of Grady, Armstrong and Weeks.
After dropping the first set to Schnoy, Armstrong rallied to take the second set 6-3 and led 3-1 in the final set. Weeks dropped a close first set to Iwinski 7-5, but dominated the second set 6-1.
Bengson, who finished the match despite the back injury, was in tears after her loss, but was equally proud of her effort against Denver and record-setting career at LBSU.
“I’m disappointed for everyone, but I played my best,” Bengson said. “As soon as my back went, I couldn’t get the shots I needed to win, but I didn’t give up. That’s the main thing.”
Bengson leaves behind a newfound legacy in LBSU women’s tennis. The “Banger” became the LBSU career leader in singles victories with 73, a record that could be toppled by Grady next year.
Grady, who still has an NCAA Singles Tournament in Tulsa, Okla., to compete in May 21, is 26-9 in singles play this season. She is 67-24 in her 49er career as a singles competitor, seven wins shy of breaking the new leader’s record.
Bengson, moreover, said she has enjoyed her time at LBSU.
“Obviously, the education is great, but the camaraderie and friends you make her is most important,” Bengson said. “[LBSU] is a great team; they’ll be fine next year.”
The 49ers will return next season with many familiar faces (five of the six starters are back for 2008-09) and may have a new tennis court on the LBSU campus to compete on.
Beach alumna Terry Rhodes’ $1.25 million donation for the construction of the new campus facility has been under way this year.
