Women's Tennis falls to Hope (Mich.) 5-0 in First Round of NCAA III Tournament

Women's Tennis falls to Hope (Mich.) 5-0 in First Round of NCAA III Tournament
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May 9, 2024

LAKE GENEVA, Wis. — The second-seeded Ohio Northern women's tennis team was eliminated in the first round of the NCAA III Tournament by Hope (Mich.) 5-0 indoors on Thursday.

This is the seventh NCAA III Tournament appearance overall and the first since 2013 for the Polar Bears.

ONU received the OAC's automatic bid to the NCAA III Tournament.

| NCAA Tournament Site |

The Basics

  • Records: Ohio Northern (18-6 overall), Hope (20-5 Overall)
  • Venue: Lake Geneva Tennis - Lake Geneva, Wis.

Match Highlights

  • The Flying Dutch won the three doubles courts and took Nos. 3 and 4 singles to post the victory.
  • The Polar Bears were highly competitive throughout the match and were winning on two of the single courts when the match reached completion.
  • HC won 8-2 at No. 2 doubles, 8-3 at No. 1 doubles and 8-6 at No. 3 doubles to lead 3-0.
  • The Dutch then won 6-4, 6-0 at No. 3 singles and 6-3, 6-1 at No. 4 doubles to wrap up the contest.
  • Sophomore Jenna Bell (Latrobe, Pa.) won her first set at No. 1 singles 6-4 and was winning 2-1 in the second set.
  • Junior Katie O'Connell (Novi, Mich./Saint Catherine) finished her first set at No. 5 singles as a 7-6(5) leader.

Notables

  • The match was moved indoors to the Lake Geneva Tennis complex due to rain and temps in the low 50s.
  • The Polar Bears qualified for their seventh NCAA III Tournament by winning the OAC Tournament last weekend with a 5-0 win over Baldwin Wallace and a 5-2 win over Otterbein.
  • ONU has previously won OAC Tournament titles in 2015, 2013, 2012, 2009, 2005 and 2002.
  • Sophomore Abby Cruser (Pendleton, Ind./Pendleton Heights) led the team this season with a 21-8 singles mark and a 36-22 overall record.
  • Junior Julianne Sheldon (Ashtabula/Saint John) had a team-best 19-8 doubles record.
  • Bell finished second on the team with a 17-9 singles mark, an 18-10 doubles record and a 35-19 overall record. 
  • Fifth-year senior Regan Landis (Elkhart, Ind./Concord) ends her career tied for seventh all-time in ONU history with a 70-22 singles record. She is also 55-17 in doubles and is 125-39 overall.
  • ONU is now 1-3 all-time against Hope, including an 0-1 record in the NCAA Tournament.
  • Hope topped ONU 8-1 in the regular season indoors on Jan. 27 this season.
  • Second-year head coach Sean Swisher is now 34-11 at the helm of the ONU women's tennis team, a winning percentage of .756.

Up Next

  • Season Complete.