2015 PSAC Tennis Championship: Cal Women, Edinboro Men Win Titles
PSAC WOMEN'S TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIP
Tuesday, April 21 (Quarterfinals) - hosted by higher seed
No. 2 IUP 5, No. 3 Mercyhurst 0
Boxscore
IUP Story |
Mercyhurst Story
No. 2 Bloomsburg 5, No. 3 Millersville 0
Boxscore
Bloomsburg Story |
Millersville Story
Friday, April 24 (Semifinals) - hosted by Bloomsburg University
No. 2 IUP 5, No. 1 West Chester 0
Boxscore
IUP Story |
West Chester Story
No. 1 California 5, No. 2 Bloomsburg 0
Boxscore
California Story |
Bloomsburg Story
Saturday, April 25 (Finals) - hosted by Bloomsburg University
No. 1 California 5, No 2 IUP 0
Boxscore
California Story |
IUP Story
PSAC MEN'S TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIP
Friday, April 24 (Semifinals) - hosted by Bloomsburg University
No. 1 Edinboro 5, No. 4 West Chester 0
Boxscore
Edinboro Story |
West Chester Story
No. 3 Mercyhurst 5, No. 2 Kutztown 4
Boxscore
Mercyhurst Story |
Kutztown Story
Saturday, April 25 (Finals) - hosted by Bloomsburg University
No. 1 Edinboro 5, No. 3 Mercyhurst 1
Boxscore
Edinboro Story |
Mercyhurst Story
PSAC WOMEN'S CHAMPIONSHIP
California Wins Ninth Straight PSAC Title
Courtesy of California Sports Information
Bloomsburg, Pa. – The No. 12 Vulcans claimed their ninth-straight Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Championship by earning a 5-0 victory over No. 32 IUP in the finals of the league tournament on Saturday afternoon.
With the win, the California University of Pennsylvania tennis team improves to 14-3 overall and extends its winning streak to five matches. The Vulcans entered the weekend as the top seed in the Atlantic Region and will likely make their 11th-consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The NCAA Tournament Selection Show is scheduled to stream on NCAA.com at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, April 28.
The Vulcans swept doubles play for the fifth-consecutive match to take a 3-0 lead on Saturday. Senior Jesse Burrell (Perth, Australia/Presbyterian Ladies' College) and sophomore Kiefer Shaw (Westmount, Quebec/Centennial), the top-ranked doubles team in the region, tallied an 8-2 victory at the first position over Tanya Timko and Jarka Petercakova, the second-ranked tandem in the region. At the second slot, seniorRamona Czakon (Trier, Germany/Tampereen Lyseon Lukio) and sophomore Mariela Sarinana (Mexico City, Mexico/Miraflores) posted their 10th win of the season with an 8-1 victory against Luise Von Agris and Rachel Wood. Sophomore Veronika Mikulis (Otterburn Park, Quebec/Heritage Regional) and freshman Lena Dimmer (Wallendorf-Pont, Luxembourg/Lycée Classique) claimed an 8-4 win at third doubles over Sophie Butland and Alanna McFail.
Cal U clinched the match victory and the league title with a pair of victories in singles play. Dimmer recorded a 6-2, 6-0 victory over regionally-ranked Gonzalez at the third position to extend her winning streak to four matches. At the fourth slot, Sarinana moved into a tie for the team lead with her 14th singles victory of the year by downing Butland by a 6-4, 6-1 count.
Following the championship match, Czakon was named the PSAC Tournament Most Outstanding Player after posting a pair wins at second doubles over the weekend.
Cal U now holds the outright lead in conference history with 11 overall league titles (1991, 1993, 2007-15). The Vulcans and Crimson Hawks have played for the PSAC Championship in each of the last five seasons.
With the loss, IUP falls to 17-7 this season and will likely earn a berth to the NCAA Tournament after entering the weekend ranked second in the region.
PSAC MEN'S CHAMPIONSHIP
Edinboro Repeats as PSAC Champions
Courtesy of Edinboro Sports Information
BLOOMSBURG, Pa. – The Edinboro men's tennis team won its second consecutive Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Championship and fifth conference title overall on Saturday afternoon with a 5-1 defeat over Mercyhurst at the Burt Reese Tennis Center in Bloomsburg, Pa. In addition, Fighting Scot redshirt sophomore Matias Aignasse was named the PSAC Championship Most Valuable Player.
Edinboro, under the guidance of fifth-year head coach Lee Underwood, becomes the first PSAC team to win back-to-back conference titles since Kutztown did and 2010 and 2011. The championship marks the second for Underwood at the helm of the Edinboro program.
Edinboro's Matias Aignasse was named the
PSAC Championship Most Valuable Player.
The Fighting Scots won their seventh match in a row, improving to 15-6 overall on the season with the victory. Edinboro has also won 10 of its last 11 contests. The Lakers fell to 13-6 with the loss.
The Fighting Scots stayed red hot in doubles play, as the three Edinboro duos swept doubles competition en route to winning Saturday's Championship.
The tandem of Aignasse and Bruno Borja rolled to its ninth straight victory with an 8-3 win at the No. 2 slot. Vitor Albanese and Brandon Romaincollected their fifth consecutive doubles win with an 8-4 triumph at the No. 1 position, while Juan Estepa and Daniel Fernandez captured their seventh victory in a row with an 8-1 win at No. 3 doubles.
In singles competition, Albanese extended his winning streak to ten matches with a 6-3, 6-4 win at the No. 1 spot. Aignasse earned a 6-4, 7-5 triumph at the No. 2 position to seal the win for the Fighting Scots.
Edinboro also won the PSAC Championship last season with a 5-3 victory over Kutztown in the final. The Fighting Scots were making their third consecutive PSAC Championship appearance, as Edinboro fell to the Golden Bears in 2013. Prior to last season, Edinboro's last PSAC title came during the 1978 season.
The Fighting Scots also won the conference crown in 1964 and 1974.
Edinboro now awaits to hear on the Atlantic Regional. The NCAA will announce the Division II Tournament field on April 28 at 8:30 p.m. on NCAA.com. The Fighting Scots sit fifth in the latest NCAA Atlantic Regional Rankings. Edinboro advanced to the NCAA Division II Round of 16 last season after winning the NCAA Atlantic Region 2 title.
PSAC MEN'S SEMIFINALS
Mercyhurst Battles Past Bloomsburg
Bloomsburg, Pa. - No. 2 Mercyhurst defeated No. 3 Kutztown in the 2015 PSAC Men's Tennis Semifinals on Friday with a 5-4 victory to advance to the championship.
The Lakers will face No. 1 Edinboro on Saturday at 1 p.m.
Mercyhurst used victories at the top three singles spots to seal the win.
Nenad Terzic claimed a win over
Verun Desai at the No. 1 singles slot, 6-3, 6-1.
Travis Beck and
Robert Rizea then earned victories at the No. 2 and No. 3 singles spots, respectively.
With the win Mercyhurst improves to 13-5 while Kutztown falls to 14-5 overall.
Edinboro Sweeps West Chester
Bloomsburg, Pa. - No. 1 Edinboro swept No. 4 West Chester in the 2015 PSAC Men's Tennis Semifinals on Friday with a 5-0 victory to advance to the championship.
The Fighting Scots will face No. 2 Mercyhurst on Saturday at 1 p.m.
Edinboro claimed every victory on the day, led by No. 1 singles
Vitor Albanese's 6-3, 5-2 win over
Jared Howatt. The Edinboro freshman then teamed with
Brandon Romain at the No. 1 doubles slot to win a hard-fought 9-8 (7-4) victory.
With the win Edinboro improves to 14-6 while West Chester moves to an 8-10 overall record.
PSAC WOMEN'S SEMIFINALS
IUP Reaches Fourth Straight Championship Match
Bloomsburg, Pa. - No. 2 IUP topped No. 1 West Chester in the 2015 PSAC Women's Tennis Semifinals on Friday with a 5-0 victory to advance to the championship.
The Crimson Hawks will face No. 1 California on Saturday at 1 p.m.
IUP swept every match against the Regional No. 10 team. At No. 1 singles,
Tanya Timko battled Golden Ram
Claire Uhle to a 6-4 victory before
Jarka Petercakova won the No. 2 singles match over WCU's
Maddy Shaak 5-3.
With the win IUP improves to 16-6 while West Chester moves to 11-7 overall.
California Looks to Defend Title
Bloomsburg, Pa. - No. 1 West seed California defeated No. 2 Bloomsburg in the 2015 PSAC Women's Tennis Semifinals on Friday with a 5-0 victory to advance to the championship.
The Vulcans will face West No. 2 seed IUP for the fifth straight season on Saturday at 1 p.m.
California swept every doubles match against the host Huskies to clinch the win. At No. 1 doubles
Kiefer Shaw and
Jesse Burrell teamed up to earn the 8-1 win, while
Ramona Czakon and
Mariela Sarinana claimed a 8-2 victory at the No. 2 position.
With the win California improves to 13-3 while Bloomsburg finishes the season at 7-8 overall.
PSAC WOMEN'S QUARTERFINALS
IUP Advances to Semifinals
Indiana, Pa. - No. 2 IUP ousted No. 3 Mercyhurst in the 2015 PSAC Women's Tennis Quarterfinals on Tuesday with a 5-0 victory in order to advance to the semifinals.
The Crimson Hawks will travel to Bloomsburg to face No. 1 West Chester on Friday at 12:00 p.m.
IUP swept every match against the Lakers. Regional No. 46
Tanya Timko defeated Mercyhurt's
Saoia Gomez 6-2, 1-4 at the No. 1 singles spot.
Jarka Petercakova topped regional No. 43
Adrianna Jeffress 6-0, 6-0 for the Crimson Hawks before teaming up with Timko to win the No. 1 doubles match-up 8-1.
With the win IUP improves to 16-6 while Mercyhurst caps its season with a 12-4 overall record.
Bloomsburg Moves On To Semifinals
Bloomsburg, Pa. - No. 2 Bloomsburg handed No. 3 Millersville a 5-0 loss in the 2015 PSAC Women's Tennis Quarterfinals in order to advance to the semifinals.
The Huskies will host No. 1 California in the PSAC Semifinals on Friday at 12:00 p.m.
Bloomsburg took every match against the Marauders.
Aida Diop topped
Tori Davis 0-6, 3-4 at the No. 1 singles spot before teaming with
Caitlin Flynn to win the No. 1 doubles match 9-8 (9-7).
With the win Bloomsburg improves to 7-7 while Millersville finishes its season with a 7-11 mark.
CHAMPIONSHIP ANNOUNCEMENT
Lock Haven, Pa. – The fields have been set for next week’s PSAC team tennis championships. The women’s tournament begins Tuesday with a pair of quarterfinal matches hosted by the higher seeds of each contest. Both the men’s and the women’s semifinals will be held on Friday April 24, at Bloomsburg, while the championship matches will be on Saturday, April 25, at Bloomsburg.
In the men’s semifinals, No. 1 Edinboro will battle No. 4 West Chester, and No. 2 Kutztown will face No. 3 Mercyhurst. Both semifinal matches are slated for a 3 p.m. start time, with the championship match scheduled for 11 a.m. on Saturday.
In the women’s tournament, No. 1 seeds California and West Chester each received a bye into the semifinals as the divisional champions. The Vulcans have now earned 11 straight West titles, while West Chester has earned its best finish in league play since going 5-1 in 2010-11.
On Tuesday, No. 2 IUP will host Mercyhurst at 4 p.m. for the third consecutive year while No. 2 Bloomsburg will host No. 3 Millersville in the other quarterfinal.
The winner of IUP and Mercyhurst will play West Chester in the semifinals on Friday, while the Bloomsburg and Millersville winner will play California. The semifinal matches are scheduled for 12 p.m. at Bloomsburg, and Friday’s championship match is slated for an 11 a.m. start.
A season ago California’s women captured their eighth straight PSAC Women’s Tennis Championship title while Edinboro men earned the program’s first league title since 1978.