The Oglethorpe women's tennis team began its spring season with a very difficult match at No. 1 Emory Sunday afternoon. The Stormy Petrels held their own, but eventually fell to the defending national champion Eagles, 9-0. 

The Petrels got a solid performance in the No. 2 doubles match, with sophomore Ingrid Wilcox and freshman Halley Sickling eventually falling to Emory's No. 2 duo, 8-3. The No. 1 doubles team of junior Katherine Walker and freshman Caroline Johnson lost 8-1 to won of the best doubles duos in the country, while juniors MaryAnne Hafen and Hailey Bowers fell in their No. 3 doubles match, 8-1.

In the singles competition, all six competitors lost in straight sets to their highly rated counterparts. Johnson fell 6-1, 6-0 at No. 1; Walker 6-0, 6-1 at No. 2; Wilcox 6-0, 6-0 at No. 3; junior Marcail McGranahan 6-0, 6-0 at No.4; Hafen 6-1, 6-0 at No. 5; and Walls 6-0, 6-0 at No. 6.

The match served as an excellent barometer for the Stormy Petrels as they get their spring season underway with a match against the consensus best team in the nation coming into the season.

"The great thing about playing the best is that you can see where your strengths are as well as your holes," said Head Coach Peter Howell. "We did a lot of things well, and have some things to work on. This match will help us get better."

The Petrels now officially move to 1-1 on the season after their 9-0 September victory over Oxford, which does count toward the team's official record. They'll next be in action on Thursday when they'll contest their home opener against Piedmont at 3:30 p.m.