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Box Score
ALTAMONTE SPRING, Fla. (May 15) – The No. 12 California University of Pennsylvania tennis team was eliminated from the NCAA Tournament with a 5-2 loss in the quarterfinals against No. 6 Saint Leo on Thursday morning.
With the loss, the Vulcans finish the year at 15-3 overall after advancing to the quarterfinals for the seventh time in the last eight seasons. Meanwhile, the Lions improve to 22-5 this season and will face the reigning National Champion and No. 2 Armstrong Atlantic (Ga.) in the semifinals tomorrow, Friday, May 16.
Saint Leo opened play on Thursday by winning two matches in doubles play, marking the first time Cal U lost a doubles match since April 5. At the second position, junior
Ramona Czakon and freshman
Mariela Sarinana (Mexico City, Mexico/Miraflores) opened the morning by suffering an 8-4 loss to the tandem of Laura Kemkes and Anastasia Wagner, which snapped a 13-match winning streak. Junior
Jesse Burrell (Perth, Australia/Presbyterian Ladies' College) and freshman
Kiefer Shaw (Westmount, Quebec/Centennial) then dropped an 8-5 match at the third slot against the tandem of Maria Benkirane and Adrianna Daszkiewicz. The Vulcans avoided the doubles sweep on Thursday, as the No. 12 duo of senior
Lucie Sipkova (Pardubice, Czech Republic/Gymnazium Pardubice Mozartova) and junior
Lucie Rey (Geneva, Switzerland/Colombieres) ended the year on an 11-match winning streak following an 8-5 victory over Pauline Helgesson and Paula Montoya at first doubles.
The Lions clinched their eighth victory in the last nine matches by winning three of the four completed singles match. Freshman
Veronika Mikulis (Otterburn Park, Quebec/Heritage Regional) suffered her first lost since Feb. 7 by falling 6-0, 6-2 at the fifth position to Montoya. At first slot, No. 20 Sipkova registered her team-best 25th singles victory by collecting a 6-1, 6-3 win over Coralie Pesenti. On Thursday, No. 34 Czakon was downed at second singles by a 6-2, 6-1 count by Kemkes, which marked her only loss in singles play this spring. Shaw then suffered a 6-1, 6-2 loss to Benkirane, as the match was clinched at fourth singles.
The team's lone senior, Sipkova posted a 48-13 record in singles action and a 55-9 mark in doubles play while playing the last two years with the Vulcans.
