Sixteen years.

The year was 1999.  The Ursinus College women's tennis team defeated Muhlenberg that spring, and it was the last time that a women's tennis team from Ursinus had managed to defeat the Mules.

Until today.

Playing inspired tennis up and down the lineup, the Bears took a 2-1 lead in doubles and never relinquished it, posting a stunning 6-3 upset win over the Mules, the #18 ranked team in the region.

"This team had that look in their eyes," head coach Pete Smith said.  "We had two good days of practice, and we were really dialed in.  We talked about what makes a good season, and what can make a season special.  And the girls really made it happen today.  I could not be prouder."

The doubles portion of the match got the Bears (10-5, 2-4 CC) off on the right foot, and they never looked back.  BreAnna Bashaw and Christina Cromwell opened the scoring for Ursinus with an 8-2 win in the third flight.  The second doubles team of Audrey Whitebloom and Ariel Danziger matched that effort with another 8-2 win.  At first doubles, the freshman duo of Ashley Nguyen and Aileen Bevard hung tough before falling in a close 8-5 defeat.

"We actually were close to sweeping in doubles," Smith remarked.  "We performed well at every slot to get that 2-1 lead.  I really liked the way we played, and the girls fed off the momentum.  I could see a lot of different paths to victory heading into singles."

In singles, Bashaw got the next point of the day with a 6-1, 6-2 win in the third flight.  Bashaw continued her red-hot play of late, as she has not lost in either singles or doubles since playing nationally ranked Johns Hopkins 4 matches ago.

"Bre has been amazing lately.  She is a quiet kid who just does her job, goes about her business, and gets it done.  It's like hey, Bre won again...and no one is at all surprised.  She is really on a roll," Smith said.

With a 3-1 lead, the Bears closed in on the match.  Danziger was a rock in the sixth slot, posting an impressive 6-2, 6-1 win to make the score 4-1.  Soon after, Muhlenberg did manage a win in the first flight, and cut the Ursinus lead to 4-2.

Not long after that, Bevard closed the deal with a 6-1, 7-6 (7-2) win in the fifth flight that gave the Bears an insurmountable 5-2 lead.  As night closed in, Muhlenberg posted a three-set win at second singles to make the score 5-3, with only Cromwell still on the court in the fourth singles tilt.

"Christina's match is one that ordinarily would not have been a big deal, because the match was already clinched," Smith observed.  "But tie breakers in this conference can be a very tricky thing.  I wanted to try and win every court possible today in case it should come down to that when you are trying to grab that last playoff spot."

Cromwell did not disappoint, coming back from a set down to post a 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 10-3 win to make the final score 6-3.  

The Bears are next slated to play at Dickinson Friday afternoon, weather permitting.