SIUE Claims First OVC Women’s Tennis Title and NCAA Bid
SIUE earned its first Ohio Valley Conference Women’s Tennis Tournament championship and NCAA Division I tournament berth with a 4-1 victory over UT Martin Sunday, April 24 in Nashville.
The win was the Cougars' 11th straight victory, redeeming their last loss March 18 against UT Martin.
SIUE lost the doubles point to fall behind 1-0 in three matches that were at one point each tied 5-5. It was just the third time all season that the Cougars gave up the doubles point. Lexi Aranda and Morgan Steffes earned a win at No. 3 to give the Cougars an early edge, but the victory wasn’t enough to secure the doubles point. SIUE lost the deciding point on a 7-3 tiebreaker at No. 2 doubles.
SIUE quickly regained the lead in singles play, jumping out to a quick start in all six matches. The four Cougars who earned singles wins won in straight sets.
Monique Krutak tied the score 1-1 when she defeated Jermima Potter 6-0, 6-1 at the No. 4 spot. Steffes pulled the Cougars ahead with a victory from the No. 5 spot against Elina Guet, ending Geut's eight-match winning streak.
Mia Frogner defeated Asel Jumamukhambetova 6-2, 6-1 at No. 2. Madeline Hill added a win at No. 3 over Burcu Tari 6-2, 6-0 to seal the win for the Cougars and send them to their first NCAA tournament.
The Cougars will enter the 64-team NCAA tournament with opening rounds beginning May 13-15. The Cougars will discover their first round destination Tuesday, May 3 at 4 p.m. during the NCAA selection show on ncaa.com.
