For the eighth consecutive year, the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater women's tennis team has punched their ticket to the NCAA Division III Championship by winning the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference team tournament.
The top four teams from the fall's WIAC standings advance to the team tournament, with the winner earning the conference's automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Championship. The Warhawks defeated UW-Oshkosh, 5-0, and UW-La Crosse, 7-2, Saturday at Janesville Premier Tennis and Fitness to improve to 22-4 this season and push their WIAC dual match win streak to 65.
In the semifinal match against UW-Oshkosh the Warhawks dropped just one game in doubles to move to singles play with a 3-0 lead.
Alexandra Talyansky (Mequon/Homestead) tallied her first victory as the number one singles player, topping Erica Van Riper 6-0, 6-1.
Jillian Wallace (Crystal Lake, IL/Central) also won for the first time at two singles with a straight sets victory over Bailey Sagen, 6-2, 6-3. Since the semifinal match is played to decision, singles flights 3 through 6 were either unfinished or unstarted.
As in the semifinal match, Wallace paired with
Alicia Beck (Bismarck, ND/St. Mary's Central) and Talyansky with
Rachel Siemon (Crystal Lake, IL/South) for a pair of wins in the finals. UW-La Crosse won the top doubles flight but trailed 2-1 heading into singles play.
Bridgid McGuire (Slinger/Slinger) picked up a straight sets win at two singles and Siemon stepped in at six singles for a win to give the Warhawks a 4-1 advantage.
Megan Humphreys (Kenosha/Tremper) sealed the team win with a 6-3, 6-0 win at one singles to improve to 27-7 this season.
The Warhawks also celebrated Senior Day on Saturday. Coach
Frank Barnes and the rest of the squad reveled their lone senior,
Amanda Dick (Kenosha/St. Joseph Catholic Academy), with a special ceremony between matches.
Amanda Dick with her family and coaches. Dick, a transfer from Drake, has made a significant contribution in her lone season with the Warhawks. Willing to play whatever position the team needs her, Dick has amassed a singles record of 14-8 and a doubles record of 3-1 this season.
This is the 12th season that the WIAC has had a participant in the NCAA DIII Championships and UW-Whitewater leads the way with eight appearances, advancing as far as the third round on three separate occassions. Last season the Warhawks defeated Edgewood College in the first round before falling to DePauw.
The Warhawks are one of the fifty schools to qualify for the 2015 NCAA Division III Championships. The remainder of the field, bracket, and sites of opening round competition will be announced on Monday, May 4th at noon. Check back with uwwsports.com for more information.
