LADY LANCERS SWEEP
GOSHEN – The 2016 season for Grace’s women’s tennis team started perfectly with a 9-0 win at Goshen on Tuesday.
The Lady Lancers coasted at nearly every position as only one singles’ match needed three sets.
Doubles’ play put Grace in a prime position after going 3-for-3. Natalia Kurkova teamed up with Jenna Jackson for an 8-1 win at No. 1, and Molly Fitzpatrick won 8-1 with freshman Carrie Copeland at No. 2.
Gabrielle Lawrence and Mariah Zumbrun won by default at No. 3 doubles.
Copeland, playing in her first collegiate match, added to her sparkling day with a 6-1, 6-0 victory at No. 2 singles. Jackson also cruised to a 6-0, 6-2 win at No. 3.
Fitzpatrick claimed a 6-0, 6-3 victory at No. 4, and Lawrence and Zumbrun won by default at No. 5 and No. 6 respectively.
Kurkova had to battle back after losing the first set 4-6 and completed her comeback 6-0 and 10-5 in the tiebreaker at No. 1.
“It’s always great to finally get to play against someone else. The girls have had a great preseason, and I know they were ready to go out and compete,” said Grace head coach Scott Moore. “We were rusty in a few areas, but the girls battled and did a lot of good things today. We are excited for the challenge of taking on IWU on Thursday.”
The Lady Lancers’ second match of the season is Thursday 4 p.m. at Indiana Wesleyan.

GRACE WINS OPENER
GOSHEN – Grace’s men’s tennis team produced a 6-3 victory at Goshen on Tuesday to kick off the 2016 season.
The Lancers earned half of their points from doubles’ play after sweeping all three matches.
Danila Kurkulin and Caleb Yoder coasted for an easy 8-2 win at No. 1 doubles.
Uros Pajic and Gabe Vervynckt battled to a 9-7 win at No. 2, and Adam Yoder and freshman Arturo Fonseca won by the identical score at No. 3.
Fonseca ended his collegiate debut with another win in singles’ play, winning 6-3, 6-3 at No. 5. His twin brother Lucas Fonseca also won in his first college match 6-4, 6-3 at No. 6.
Kurkulin dominated his match at No. 1 singles by a 6-1, 6-0 scoreline.
“This was a great way to start the season, because we had a lot of close matches. Many of our players responded well to the pressure and played great tennis,” said Grace head coach Larry Schuh. “Everyone fought hard in singles and I look forward to a strong season this year.”
The Lancers will have their home opener on Sept. 6 against Trine.

LANCERS SWEEP NCCAA AWARDS
WINONA LAKE – The first NCCAA National Runner of the Week honors both went to Grace.
Nathan Lane won the men’s national award, and Raven Arellano claimed the women’s to complete a sweep for the Lancers.
Lane made a triumphant return to the cross country course after missing all of last season with an injury. Lane claimed the title of the Northwest Classic, outpacing 32 other runners with a time of 16:59. Lane’s average time per mile in this 5k race was 5:29, helping to lead the Lancers to victory over three other teams.