Carroll box score
Beloit box score

NEW BERLIN, Wisconsin & ROCKFORD, Illinois – The Prairie Fire came up short against Carroll University and Beloit College, but a first-year player for Knox had the best day of her brief college career in one of the Midwest Conference matches on Saturday.

Knox began the day with a 9-0 loss to Carroll indoors at the Moorland Park Tennis Center.  The Prairie Fire followed with a 7-2 setback against Beloit at the Rockford Boylan Tennis Center.

First-year Lauren Sparks (Salem, OR, South Salem) accounted for both Knox wins in the match with the Buccaneers.

Sparks and sophomore Kaly Davidson (Needham, MA, Needham) teamed up for an 8-6 victory in their #3 doubles match against Beloit's Allison Vance and Sarah Pipal.  The win was the first for both Sparks and Davidson in doubles play.

And Sparks wasn't done yet.  She won in convincing fashion -- 6-2, 6-2 – in her #5 singles match against Vance.

"It was an exciting day for Lauren," Prairie Fire head coach Miriam Skrade said.  "She and Kaly are communicating and covering one-another very well in doubles. They've been solid competitors in doubles against all of their opponents, but today it was great to see that converted into a win for them.  The confidence from that match carried over into singles.  Lauren moved her feet well and executed her shots effectively to string points, to earn games, and clinch the singles match," Skrade added.

Knox had another close doubles match go the other way.  First-years Taytem Chapman (Lincoln, NE, Lincoln East) and Miranda Corbett (Algonquin, IL, Jacobs) came out on the wrong side of an 8-6 score in #1 doubles against Trina Capelli and Alexandra Kurpiel of Beloit.

Corbett and junior Maggie St. Clair (Mount Vernon, IA, Mount Vernon) also gave the Prairie Fire a determined effort in singles play against the Buccaneers (3-8, 2-4 MWC).  Corbett dropped a 6-1, 7-5 decision to Kurpiel in their #2 singles match while St. Clair couldn't get over the hump in #4 singles against Nyasha Nyamhondoro, who hung on for a 7-5 win in the first set and closed out the match with a 6-2 victory in set two.

Chapman and Corbett earlier in the day faced one of the top #1 doubles teams in the conference, Carroll senior Abigail Pellett and junior Julia Patzin.  Pellett, the 2012 Midwest Conference #1 singles champion, and Patzin pulled away to earn an 8-3 victory for the Pioneers over Chapman and Corbett to improve to 8-2 playing #1 doubles together so far this season.

Carroll (7-7, 3-3 MWC) dropped only 10 games to the Prairie Fire.

Knox (1-11, 1-5 MWC) is back in action on Sunday against Lake Forest College.  The Foresters (9-2, 6-1 MWC) have won four straight after sweeping both Illinois College and Monmouth College 9-0 on Saturday.