LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Wofford College women’s tennis team kicked off the 2015 championship season on the road, where the Terriers fell to the Liberty Flames, 6-1, on Friday afternoon at the Sports Racket.

Wofford (0-1) struggled against the Flames, earning the lone point in singles play. Freshman Samantha Russell stood out during the day’s action, earning wins during both singles and doubles action. Russell began the day teaming up with sophomore Taylor Carlson, where the two earned a hard-fought 7-5 win at the No. 3 position over Mariely Hassey and Nicola Wellman. Russell continued to shine, defeating Lauren Mabe in two sets of singles play, 6-4, 6-1.

Liberty (1-0) took every singles match except the No. 5 spot, but not without some pushback from the young Wofford squad. Sophomore Catherine Martin and senior Audrey Coventry played at the No. 1 and No. 2 positions, respectively, and forced tiebreakers in the eventual losses. Martin played Belen Rivera close, falling 6-2, 7-6 (7-3), while Coventry rallied before the 6-1, 7-6 (7-3) loss to Hassey.

Sophomore Kalli Karas and freshman Lauren Reid played at the No. 3 and No. 4 spots for Wofford. Karas dropped a 6-2, 6-2 decision to Emily Groeneveld, while Reid lost 6-3, 6-2 to Brittany Yang. Mareli Sanchez rounded out singles action at the No. 6 spot in a 6-2, 6-2 defeat at the hands of Evangeline Crist.

In doubles, Karas and Reid played at No. 1, dropping a 6-3 decision to Maria Khval and Groeneveld. Martin and Sanchez battled at No. 2, dropping a 6-1 decision to Crist and Valerie Thong.