ELON, N.C. — For the ninth-straight year, William & Mary will make an appearance in the CAA Women’s Tennis Championship match. The Tribe made quick work of No. 6 seed UNCW, 4-0, on Saturday afternoon at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center to once again earn a spot in the finals.
W&M (17-5) extended its win streak to 13 in a row, which is the second longest in school history. The Green and Gold will try to complete a three-peat on Sunday when it faces top-seed Delaware in the CAA Championship match. The Tribe has won 28 of the 38 all-time league crowns.
In a rematch of last season’s CAA Championship match, the Tribe jumped out to an early lead over UNCW by taking the doubles point for the 18th time in its 22 matches. Graduate student Mila Mejic and freshman Francesca Davis gave the Tribe the early lead with a 6-2 win at No. 3 over Gabbie Glickstein and Anna Parker. The duo improved to 7-1 on the year.
Graduate student Yu Chen and junior Emma Fernald clinched the initial point of the match behind a 6-2 win over Eda Arli and Elif Albayrak at the top spot. It was Chen and Fernald’s third-straight win and they moved to 12-5 at No. 1.
In singles, it was a trio of juniors that put the finishing touches on the semifinal win. Junior Alessandra Anghel dropped just three games to increase the Tribe lead to 2-0. She posted a 6-3, 6-0 win over Katelyn Hubbard at No. 4 to up her season mark to 14-6 on the year.
Like they had in the quarterfinals, juniors Ine Stange and Hedda Gurholt wrapped up the Tribe triumph. Stange topped Alicia Eberwein, 6-0, 7-5, for her fifth win in a row at No. 5. It was her 20th victory of the year and she moved to 16-4 in dual-match action.
As she did on Friday, Gurholt clinched the Tribe win at the top spot. She upended Eda Arli, 6-2, 7-5, for her fifth win in a row. Gurholt extended her season mark to an impressive 27-5 on the year, including 13-2 at No. 1.
The Tribe takes on Delaware in the championship match on Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center. The Blue Hens knocked off Drexel, 4-0, on Saturday to earn its first championship appearance.
William & Mary 4, UNCW 0
Singles
No. 1 – Hedda Gurholt (W&M) def. Eda Arli (UNCW) – 6-2, 7-5
No. 2 – Yu Chen (W&M) vs. Stela Joksimovic (UNCW) – DNF, 6-1, 4-6, 2-0
No. 3 – Mila Mejic (W&M) vs. Elif Albayrak (UNCW) – DNF, 2-6, 6-2, 2-1
No. 4 – Alessandra Anghel (W&M) def. Katelyn Hubbard (UNCW) – 6-3, 6-0
No. 5 – Ine Stange (W&M) def. Alicia Eberwein (UNCW) – 6-0, 7-5
No. 6 – Francesca Davis (W&M) vs. Alex Borcich (UNCW) – DNF, 6-4, 3-5
Finishing Order: 4, 5, 1*
Doubles
No. 1 – Chen/Fernald (W&M) def. Arli/Albayrak (Campbell) – 6-2
No. 2 – Gurholt/Stange (W&M) vs. Joksimovic/Eberwein (UNCW) – DNF, 2-4
No. 3 – Davis/Mejic (W&M) def. Glickstein/Parker (UNCW) – 6-2
Finishing Order: 3, 1*
