Sydney Sharma (CAS’25) during a match at Harvard February 2. A women’s tennis cocaptain, Sharma has been instrumental in leading a program that’s short-handed from injuries. Photos by Eliza Nuestro

Athletics

BU Women’s Tennis No. 2 Seed Entering Patriot League Tournament

Terriers are after their first conference title since 2022-2023

When Boston University’s women’s tennis lost two of its top six players to injury heading into the spring season, the team needed players to step up.

And step up they did. The team’s young talent, buoyed by the program’s leadership and culture, closed out their regular season with a 10-8 record—and a 5-1 conference slate. This weekend, the short-handed Terriers will have a chance to claim their 29th conference championship when they compete as the No. 2 seed in the Patriot League tournament at Colgate University in Hamilton, N.Y. 

“We have a great culture and they’re really supportive of each other, and I think that really has taken us much further,” says Lesley Sheehan (CAS’84), team head coach. “For some of the trials and tribulations that we’ve had, we’ve done really well.”

Sheehan specifically cites Rhea Rai (CAS’26), cocaptain Nina Gulbransen (CAS’25), and cocaptain Sydney Sharma (CAS’25) as players who have stepped up in the absence of Michelle Kleynerman (CAS’25) and Ellie Gyuro (CAS’27), who underwent surgery. She says her players now know what they’re capable of as they enter this year’s tournament.

The Terriers went undefeated in conference play last season, earning top seed in the Patriot League tournament. They fell just short, however, with a 4-3 loss to Navy in the championship match. 

“It definitely really stung because of just how tight the loss was in the PL final last year,” Gulbransen says. “That’s something that’s just a really big motivator for us. It’s something that kind of lights a fire under us—to show up and give 100 percent every single day.”

Following a rocky 1-3 start to this spring’s nonconference schedule, Sheehan says the team’s turning point came in a 4-3 win over Boston College February 7—the first time the BU program has defeated the Eagles since 2013. Following that win, the Terriers were 9-5 in the remainder of the season, with a five-game winning streak from late March to early April.

“That win against BC just injected a lot of belief into us,” Sharma says. “It showed us what we are really capable of and how off-court work is really pushing us forward and making a difference.”

Sheehan says this weekend’s Patriot League Championship will be a battle among BU, Army, and Navy. The Terriers fell to Army by only one point (4-3) in Patriot League play last weekend and enjoyed a competitive come-from-behind 4-3 win against Navy earlier this month. 

Young talent has defined the team this season, with BU’s top four players all underclassmen. Uma Bakaityte (Sargent’27) sits in the top spot with a 14-11 record in singles matches that earned her last week’s Patriot League Player of the Week. Madison Liu (Questrom’28) and Gabriella Mikaul (CAS’28), as well as Blanka DiMicheli (CAS’27), round out the top four.

“It’s a pretty young class, and they have already proved so much just in this year,” Sheehan says. “They get better and better. They’re very strong competitors.”

The coach says earning the doubles point will be key in the Patriot League tournament—the point that eluded the Terriers in their matches against Army and Navy this season.

The Terriers last won the league title in 2022-2023, and Sharma says the team was too focused on defending their title last season. This year, however, she says the team is “going in hungry.”

But as the Terriers prepare to take on Colgate in the Patriot League tournament quarterfinals on Friday at Colgate, Sheehan says the team isn’t talking about winning the championship.

“Obviously, the big goal is to win the whole thing. But we don’t really talk about that,” the coach says. “We talk about getting out there and working on the things that we’ve been working on…and staying mentally mindful and resilient. If we do that, we’ll do well.”

The Boston University women’s tennis team begins play in the 2025 Patriot League Championship Tournament on Friday, April 25, at Colgate’s J. W. Abrahamson Tennis Courts in Hamilton, N.Y. Live statistics will be posted on goterriers.com, and updates will be posted live via Twitter @BUGameDay and @TerrierWTennis.