Miranda Ramirez overcomes rough second set to win against Yale

Miranda Ramirez was rolling at first singles. Having handled her opponent in under 30 minutes in the first set, she appeared headed toward a fifth-consecutive straight-set singles win at home.

When the scorecards reset after the first set, Ramirez was in for a surprise.

Just as quickly as Ramirez took the opening set 6-1, her lead in the match evaporated when she dropped the second set, 6-2. With the match level at three games all in the final set, Ramirez found an extra gear that Yale’s Samantha Martinelli couldn’t match to cap off a sixth-consecutive win at Drumlins Country Club for Syracuse (6-1, 1-1 Atlantic Coast) against Yale (3-5), 6-0, on Sunday afternoon.

“She played extremely well in those last three games that I watched,” head coach Younes Limam said.

When lineups were initially released, Ramirez was scheduled to play at second singles behind Gabriela Knutson. However, Limam decided after SU won the doubles point that Knutson would sit out the singles competition. Knutson has been dealing with a right shoulder injury, but Limam said she is “100 percent available.”

Limam’s decision forced the entire ladder to slide up one spot, leaving Ramirez on the top rung.

Playing against an aggressive baseline opponent, Ramirez forced numerous errors in the opening set before Martinelli stepped up her game. The SU sophomore relied heavily on her forehand to move her opponent around as she won the final five games of the opening set.

Martinelli worked her way back into the match and forced a readjustment from Ramirez. Relying on her huge forehand to generate points, Martinelli hit winners from all over the court.

“(Martinelli) played very well, especially in the second set,” Ramirez said. “She was very aggressive, she was moving me around a lot, she made a lot of shots.”

Martinelli frequently ran to the left corner of the court to maximize the number of forehands she hit. The same shots that missed in the first set started painting the lines. Instead of going shot for shot with Martinelli, Ramirez added a little more guile, changing her approach to throw off her opponent’s rhythm.

“She figured me out a little and got used to the balls I was hitting to her,” Ramirez said. “I started playing with more spin, make her move, and get the ball out of her contact point.”

Players who play with big power rely on rhythm and timing to keep shots in, and the subtle changes Ramirez made were effective. By adding spin, dictating with her forehand and being patient, Ramirez grabbed the opening two games of the second set before hitting yet another rough patch. Martinelli refused to go away, and Ramirez again saw her lead evaporate.

At 3-3 in the third set, Ramirez took her game up a level.

“I think the last three games of the match were the best ones for me, my best tennis of the day,” Ramirez said.

She pounded back-to-back backhand winners up the line to hold serve, letting out a huge “come on” after each winner. To break Martinelli’s serve, she stepped into the baseline to take advantage of Yale’s top singles player’s second serve. By taking the return early, Ramirez was able to get Martinelli on the defensive from the first ball of the rally.

On break point, it was Ramirez’s attacking return that forced an error from the other side of the net. Finally, Ramirez generated the separation that allowed her to serve out the match.

Ramirez hit all but one of her first serves in the court during her final service game to close out the match. On match point, Ramirez watched as Martinelli’s forehand floated beyond the baseline, clinching the sixth and final point of the afternoon for SU.