WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – William & Mary senior Olivia Thaler and junior Lauren Goodman rallied for three-set singles wins to clinch the No. 47-ranked Tribe women's tennis' 5-2 win over Colonial Athletic Association foe James Madison on Saturday afternoon at the McCormack-Nagelsen Tennis Center. The Green and Gold (12-8, 1-0 CAA), playing its first of two CAA matches on the day, jumped out to a 2-0 lead thanks to the doubles point and senior Ekaterina Stepanova's win at No. 5, before Goodman and Thaler brought home the program's 32nd win in a row over the Dukes (17-2, 3-1 CAA).  
 
The Tribe attacked the strength of the JMU doubles lineup in picking up the initial point of the match. The Dukes had won the doubles point in 15 of their 18 matches and were a sparkling 28-4 combined between the No. 2 and No. 3 position. W&M posted matching 6-2 triumphs at both spots to capture the initial point. Senior Olivia Thaler and sophomore Rosie Cheng bounced Jona Roka and Dylan Owens, who entered the match at 11-1, at No. 3, before junior Lauren Goodman and sophomore Natalia Perry clinched the point with the victory over Anna Makarova and Emma Peterson, who were 10-2 on the year, on the two line.

Senior Ekaterina Stepanova won in straight set at No. 5 to increase the Tribe margin to 2-0. She topped Kimmy Herrock, 6-4, 6-2, for her second-straight win and eighth overall in dual-match play. 
 
Goodman and Thaler rallied for three-set wins at No. 4 and No. 6 singles to cement the Tribe win over the Dukes. After trading 6-3 sets to open, JMU's Emma Petersen led Goodman, 4-2, in the decisive third set before the Tribe junior ripped off four-straight games, including the capper down the line, for her 17th win of the year.
 
Following a tiebreaker setback in the opening set, Thaler bounced back with a 6-4 triumph over Diane Flament in the second. The Tribe senior raced out to a 4-0 lead in the third on the way to the clinching 6-2 triumph and her team-leading 22nd win of the season.
 
Cheng closed out the Tribe victory with a three-set win of her own at the top singles post. She won the opening set in a tiebreaker, before the JMU's Liz Norman came back to take the second, 6-3. The Tribe sophomore rallied from a 3-1 deficit in the decisive third set, winning won six of the final eight games, including the final two, to pull out a 7-5 win. Norman entered the match at 24-2 overall and a perfect 16-0 in dual-match play.
 
Notes
The Tribe won its 32nd in a row against James Madison, improving to 44-1 overall and 24-1 in Williamsburg vs. the Dukes … Senior Olivia Thaler and sophomore Rosie Cheng won their second straight at No. 3 doubles, improving to 3-1 at the spot … Junior Lauren Goodman and sophomore Natalia Perry pushed their mark to 6-3 at No. 2 doubles … Senior Ekaterina Stepanova won her second-straight singles match and her eighth in dual-match play, while improving to 4-1 at No. 5 … Goodman posted her 17th singles win of the year and fourth at the No. 4 spot, while upping her dual-match record to 11-9 … Thaler won her second match in a row, pushing her team-leading singles ledger to 22-11 … She is 9-4 at the No. 6 spot and 12-8 in dual-match competition … Cheng won her eighth match at No. 1 singles, improving to 15-14 overall.
 
Up Next
W&M closes out its Saturday CAA doubleheader against Towson at 4 p.m. at the McCormack-Nagelsen Tennis Center. Live streaming for the match is available via Playsight at TribeAthletics.com/TennisLive.
 
#47 William & Mary 5, James Madison 2
Singles
No. 1 – Rosie Cheng (W&M) def. Liz Norman (JMU) – 7-6, 3-6, 7-5
No. 2 – Anna Makarova (JMU) def. Clara Tanielian (W&M) – 7-6, 6-1
No. 3 – Jona Roka (JMU) def. Natalia Perry (W&M) – 7-6, 7-5
No. 4 – Lauren Goodman (W&M) def. Emma Petersen (JMU) – 3-6, 6-3, 6-4
No. 5 – Ekaterina Stepanova (W&M) def. Kimmy Herrock (JMU) – 6-4, 6-2
No. 6 – Olivia Thaler (W&M) def. Diane Flament (JMU) – 6-7, 6-4, 6-2
Finishing Order: 5, 2, 3, 4, 6*, 1
 
Doubles
No. 1 – Amos/Norman (JMU) def. Tanielian/Okuyama (W&M) – 7-6 (4)
No. 2 – Goodman/Perry (W&M) def. Makarova/Petersen (JMU) – 6-2
No. 3 – Cheng/Thaler (W&M) def. Roka/Owens (JMU) – 6-2
Finishing Order: 3, 2*, 1