Second-ranked Emory University will play for its second-consecutive NCAA Division III Women's Tennis Championship on Wednesday, after the Eagles earned a trip to the title match with a 5-1 victory over third-ranked Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges in the semifinals at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason, Ohio on Tuesday.
Emory (20-3) will face top-ranked Williams College (24-0) in the Championship Match on Wednesday at 11:00 am, after the Ephs reached the title contest with a 5-1 win over Amherst on Tuesday. Emory and Williams have combined to win 13 of the last 14 NCAA Division III Women's Tennis Championships, and will be playing each other for the championship for the second time in the last three years, and the fourth time overall.
This is Emory's 10th appearance in the National Championship match, and its third-straight. The program has claimed six NCAA Championships, winning the title in 1996, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2014.
Fans can follow the action on Wednesday with live video (http://www.ncaa.com/liveschedule) and results (http://livestats.onu.edu/livestats/wt1/xlive.htm).
On Tuesday, Emory jumped out to the early lead against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, claiming the first two doubles points of the match. The third doubles contest was the first to finish, with sophomore Melissa Goodman and senior Rebecca Siegler besting Lindsay Brown and Laura Livingston 8-4. At first doubles, freshman Anna Fuhr and sophomore Michelle Satterfield followed with an 8-4 victory against Katie Kousman and Caroline Ward.
The Athenas salvaged a point in the second doubles match, with Sarah Kukino and Kyla Scott coming from behind to defeat Emory freshman Bridget Harding and sophomore Katarina Su 8-6.
In singles action, junior Beatrice Rosen extended Emory's lead to 3-1 with a 6-3, 6-1 win against Kousman in the second match, while at sixth singles, junior Madison Gordon put the Eagles a match win away from a trip to the finals with a 6-3, 6-0 win against Bria Smith. Harding would go onto clinch the victory for Emory, closing out a 7-6 (2), 6-3 win over Scott at fifth singles.
When play was stopped, Satterfield held a 6-0, 5-4 lead over Ward at first singles, while Goodman trailed Kukino 6-3, 4-4 at third singles, and Su was down a set to Brown, 7-5, 4-1, at fourth singles.
The win was the 10th-straight victory for the Eagles.
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps ended its season with an overall record of 25-2, with both losses during the year coming against Emory.