Doubles were already going poorly for Syracuse. Kim Hansen and Zeynep Erman had already lost. SU’s other two doubles partners were down in their matches to St. John’s. And then it got worse. 

Freshman Polina Kozyreva sprinted back to return a shot from the deuce baseline delivered by a St. John’s doubles team of Kajsa Stegrell and Gabriela Tenorio. Then she tripped, grabbed her left ankle and cried out in pain.

“Are you OK?” asked Tenorio from across the net.

It quickly became apparent Kozyreva wasn’t. Not only did SU have to forfeit Kozyreva and partner Sofya Treshcheva’s match — ending a chance at winning the doubles point — but also had to forfeit Kozyreva’s singles match. Syracuse eventually overcame the lost point and continued its undefeated start to the season by defeating the Red Storm, 4-3, on Friday afternoon. Going forward, though, the Orange may not have enough players to fill all three doubles pairings.

“I couldn’t be prouder of the team today,” head coach Younes Limam said.  “A lot of adversity but couldn’t be prouder of how every single one of them handled it.”

Kozyreva was eventually helped to the bench by two trainers and Treshcheva, who dealt with injuries of her own last season. She walked to the corner of her court and stared at the wall in tears. Teammate Sofya Golubovskaya walked over to Treshcheva, putting her hand on her shoulder to console the sophomore. Kozyreva wept openly at the pain she was enduring in her left ankle.

Treshcheva said she had never seen an injury like Kozyreva’s in all her years of competition. St. John’s coach Lauren Leo discussed her team’s new lineup with an ITA umpire, attempting to sort out the confusion of what to do next. 

“That was weird,” St. John’s freshmen Willa Bay Breunich remarked to teammate Stegrell. “That wasn’t expected.”

Trainers found crutches while Kozyreva elevated her leg on the bench. Then, before singles, coach Younes Limam huddled his team in a serious discussion. While her team chatted, Kozyreva swung her crutches towards a chair next to the scoreboard on court four, sandwiched between her teammates matches.

According to Treshcheva, Limam’s message was simple yet impactful. To fight for Kozyreva.

“We’re not only teammates, we’re friends too” Hansen said. “So we were kind of worried.”

Down two matches before singles even began, Syracuse quickly responded to Limam’s message. Miranda Ramirez began her match with a quick 1-0 lead. In the second game, tied 30-30, Ramirez boomed three shots deep to Milka Genkova’s backhand. After reaching the first two, Genkova stopped in her tracks on the third shot, realizing there was no point to even move for a ball she wouldn’t get to. 

Meanwhile on court six, Hansen pushed Najah Dawson five feet behind the baseline with thundering forehands. Quickly, Hansen jumped out to a 3-0 lead.

Just as soon as it seemed SU had regrouped, momentum slid back in St. John’s favor. Top singles player Guzal Yusupova lost to Jessica Livianu, the No. 40 player in the nation (6-1, 6-1). 

Down three matches to zero, SU needed to win the remaining four matches to squeak out the team victory. 

After winning the first set 6-3 and up 3-2 in the second, Ramirez began to struggle. The senior fell behind 15-0 in the sixth game and began picking at the strings of her racket in frustration after missing a shot wide in the deuce alley that ended a 16-ball rally. 

“Wait, did you call that out?” Ramirez asked Genkova after another missed shot.

Hansen – who defeated Dawson 6-0 in the first set – also began to sputter. The match paused for seven minutes as the two argued the score, eventually ending in a coin flip which fell in Dawson’s favor. To Hansen, the quirky college rule was new to her. After winning the first three games of the second set, the long pause in play – combined with Dawson’s slow playing style and a hurting wrist – caused Hansen to falter.

“Let’s go Miranda, let’s go Kim!” cheered Kozyreva from the sideline. 

Through her pain, Kozyreva continued to encourage her teammates. But in the quieter moments, her discomfort was evident.

“It’s like a torture,” Kozyreva told a trainer who asked the freshman to try to wiggle her toes. Her teammates did everything in their power to help Kozyreva and win the match. Fellow injured teammate Golubovskaya retrieved Kozyreva’s blue Syracuse sweatpants and team jacket, which Kozyreva draped on her legs.

Soon after, Erman won her match (6-2, 6-2). Then Ramirez finished off Genkova (6-3, 6-2). After a second set battle, Hansen defeated Dawson (6-0, 6-4), finalizing the contentious match. Starting down 3-0, the Orange had tied it up, as all the pressure shifted to Treshcheva’s match against Oceane Garibel.

Between tears and deep breaths, Kozyreva crossed her arms under her white long-sleeve Syracuse warmup shirt, glaring at her injured ankle. After Treshcheva secured the individual (6-2, 2-6, 6-3) and team win, 4-3, Kozyreva leaned on her crutches and exited the court. From the moment Limam huddled the team before singles, the mood was determined and focused. After the match, and the ecstasy of the win faded, reality set in. 

With Kozyreva and Golubovskaya injured, Syracuse doesn’t have enough players to fill all three doubles teams or all six singles matches. When asked what the plan was going forward, the answer was grim.

“I have no idea right now,” said Limam.

Published on February 7, 2020 at 10:52 pm

Contact Thomas: tgshults@syr.edu | @ThomasShults_