By: Ryan Gasser, sports information director

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Capital University women's tennis team got back on the courts to play its first match of the spring season. The Crusaders welcomed the Cardinals of Concordia University (Mich.) to the Olympic Indoor Tennis Club on Wednesday afternoon but lost after a series of close bouts, 6-3.

The match began optimistically for the Crusaders (1-6) after a split between the two squads following the first two completed doubles teams. In a trio of shortened matches, Capital's number two team was downed, 6-2, but the duo of MacKenzie Archibald (Parma, Ohio/Parma) and Katie Woods (Sardinia, Ohio/Eastern Brown) did a job in the number three position, defeating Kaylee Tucker and Jamie Tadrick, 6-4, to tie the match at 1-1.

In the top flight doubles pairing, it took a tiebreaker to find a winner between the teams of Madison Watt and Ashlee Freeman, and Heather Ernke and Charity Felton. Knotted up 6-6, the Cardinals picked up the point after outlasting Capital, 7-5.

Down 2-1 heading into singles play, Capital picked up its second point to tie the game when Madison Watt (Wapakoneta, Ohio/Wapakoneta) continued her success from the fall with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Mackenzie Devine.

Unfortunately for Capital, Concordia won back-to-back-to-back matches in the second, fifth and third singles flights to clinch the win.

Newcomer Julia Holt (Camden, Mass./Camden Hills Regional) debuted in a big way with a victory in the four spot of the Capital order. Holt fell behind to Kaylee Tucker after a first-set loss, but then stormed back with a 6-3 win to knot it up and then went on to cruise through the tiebreaker, 10-5, to claim the point.

Capital's next contest will open up the Ohio Athletic Conference schedule with a match against John Carroll University on Saturday, March 24.