• Box Score

BLOOMSBURG, Pa. (April 21) – The No. 13 California University of Pennsylvania tennis team extended its win streak to seven matches on Thursday when it posted a 5-0 victory over West Chester in the semifinals of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament.

With the win, the Vulcans improve to 18-7 this season and will play in the PSAC Championship for the sixth-straight year (4-1). Cal U will now face IUP for the conference title tomorrow, Friday, April 22, at 9 a.m. Meanwhile, the Golden Rams had their nine-match winning streak snapped and fall to 15-9 overall.

Cal U swept doubles session for the seventh-straight match, winning all three matches by an 8-2 margin. At the first position, junior Annabel Pieschl (Gothenburg, Sweden/Katrinelund) and sophomore Jade Pondicas (Johannesburg, South Africa/British International Distance) dealt Golden Rams' Brittany Counts and Luisi Souto an 8-2 defeat. Juniors Axelle Fernandez (Toulouse, France/Institut Familial) and Anastassiya Zherdeva (Almaty, Kazakhstan/Gumnasia Number 60) claimed their 20th win of the season when they posted an 8-2 win at second doubles over Tara Krauss and Ali Fetter, while senior Laurie Navarro (Eysus, France/Jules Supervielle) and junior Franziska Steinhardt (Bad Lausick, Germany/St. Augustin Gymnasium) claimed an 8-2 win over Nicole Paller and Kara Shumock at the third spot.

The Vulcans then clinched the match victory with a pair of wins in singles play. At the fifth slot, Fernandez earned her seventh-consecutive victory by posting a 6-0, 6-1 win over Alex Santoro. Navarro also won her seventh-straight match by defeating Shumock at the sixth position, 6-0, 6-0.

Cal U, who is the top-ranked team in the Atlantic Region, continues play at the PSAC Tournament when it faces IUP for the conference title on Friday morning. Earlier this month, the Vulcans registered a 9-0 win over the Crimson Hawks, who are ranked third in the region by the NCAA.