SHERMAN, Texas -- The 19th-ranked Trinity University women's tennis team won its eighth consecutive Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship with a 5-2 victory over 21st-ranked Southwestern University on Sunday. Official Website l Bracket l Postmatch Interview
The Tigers' Caroline Kutach and Megan Flores started off the scoring for Trinity with an 8-3 win at line two doubles to move to 9-6 as a team this season, and Andrea De Leon and Francesca Canjar kept their unbeaten streak alive at 5-0 with their line three win that put Trinity up 2-0. Mary and Zoe Kaffen battled for a tough 8-6 victory at line one to finish off the sweep, securing their fourth straight doubles win to move to 10-8 on the year.
In singles play, De Leon took a straight-set win at line four to put her team ahead 4-0, but Southwestern's Mary Cardone was able to grab a win at line one for the Pirates' first point of the day, then followed with a three-set victory by Esther Bowers at line two to make it a 4-2 match.
The Tigers' Zoe Kaffen, however, stopped the momentum, as she rallied for a 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 comeback victory to clinch the match for the Tigers at line three.
With the victory, Trinity receives the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Playoffs with official selections being announced on May 6. Head Coach Gretchen Rush has led Trinity to the conference title in each of her five seasons, and the Tiger women's program has now won 23 total SCAC championships.
The 23 total conference titles is tied with the TU men's soccer program for the second-most conference championships by one program in league history. Trinity men's tennis won its 24th championship earlier in the day.
Trinity receives the SCAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Playoffs with official selections being announced on May 6.
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Trinity (13-6) will await opening round selections to determine matchups, times, and location for the NCAA Playoffs. Southwestern (18-3), which was ranked fifth and just one slot behind Trinity in the last NCAA West Region rankings, will await word for a team and/or individual bids.
TRINITY 5, SOUTHWESTERN 2
April 21, 2019 at Sherman, Texas (Russell Tennis Center)
| Singles competition |
| 1. Mary Cardone (SU) def. Caroline Kutach (TU) 6-3, 6-1 |
| 2. Esther Bowers (SU) def. Ashley DeBauge (TU) 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 |
| 3. Zoe Kaffen (TU) def. Mariana Quetzeri (SU) 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 |
| 4. Andrea De Leon (TU) def. Nina Elez (SU) 6-3, 6-4 |
| 5. Hailey Feuer (TU) vs. Cecile Wilde (SU) 4-1, unfinished |
| 6. Paulina Garcia (TU) vs. Meeshti Shethia (SU) 1-3, unfinished |
| Doubles competition |
| 1. Mary Kaffen/Zoe Kaffen (TU) def. Esther Bowers/Cecile Wilde (SU) 8-6 |
| 2. Caroline Kutach/Megan Flores (TU) def. Mary Cardone/Mariana Quetzeri (SU) 8-3 |
| 3. Andrea De Leon/Francesca Canjar (TU) def. Nina Elez/Stephanie Bartusov (SU) 8-2 |
| Match Notes |
| Southwestern (Tex.) 18-3 |
| Trinity (Tex.) 13-6 |
