Box Score
INDIANA, Pa. (April 14) – In a pivotal match in terms of both the NCAA regional rankings and league standings, the No. 18 Vulcans secured at least a share of first place in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West standings on Thursday afternoon with a 7-2 win at No. 36 IUP.
With the victory, the California University of Pennsylvania tennis team improves to 14-2 overall with a 5-0 mark in divisional action with one league match remaining. The Vulcans were ranked third in the initial NCAA Atlantic regional rankings released yesterday, while the Crimson Hawks were the top team in the region. Meanwhile, IUP falls to 15-2 this season with a 4-1 record in league play.
The Vulcans swept doubles play for the ninth-straight match and the 12th time this season. Junior
Jasi Witherspoon (Macon, Ga./Howard) and freshman
Holly Bennett (Kingston, United Kingdom/Sussex Downs-Lewes) opened the session with an 8-2 win at second doubles against Rachel Wood and Alanna McFail. At the first position, the No. 12 tandem of senior
Kiefer Shaw (Westmount, Quebec/Centennial) and sophomore
Lena Dimmer (Wallendorf-Pont, Luxembourg/Lycée Classique) then posted an 8-3 victory over the No. 21 duo of Jarka Petercakova and Luise von Agris. Juniors
Veronika Mikulis (Otterburn Park, Quebec/Heritage Regional) and
Alyssa Savill (Holbrook, Australia/Billabong) recorded their 10th-straight victory by collecting an 8-4 win at the third slot against Sophie Butland and Claudia Menes.
Cal U completed the match victory against IUP by winning four of six singles matches. Shaw opened singles play with a 6-4, 6-0 loss to Petercakova at the first position before Savill extended her winning streak to 10 matches after claiming a 6-2, 6-1 victory against McFail at sixth singles. Dimmer, who is the No. 30 player in the country, then posted a 6-4, 7-5 win at the second slot over von Agris before Mikulis dropped a 7-5, 6-4 match to Menes at the fourth position. Witherspoon recorded her 15th win of the year by outlasting Butland at third singles by a 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 10-8 count before Bennett closed the match with a 6-3, 1-6, 6-4 victory over Wood at the fifth slot.
The Vulcans close out PSAC West play on Saturday, April 16, when they host Slippery Rock at 2 p.m.
