Sophomore Emma Prinos has won the deciding point in each of the Skyhawks two NE-10 tournament wins this week. (PHOTO BY Emily Reynolds) |
Third-seeded Skyhawks visit top-seeded Panthers with NCAA bid on the line
NE-10 Championship Game Program
NE-10 Women's Tennis Championship Central
GARDEN CITY, N.Y. (October 24, 2015) – Third-seeded Stonehill College, ranked sixth in the most recent Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Division II East Regional rankings, seeks a second straight Northeast-10 Tournament Championship and sixth title overall when it visits top-seeded and NE-10 Regular Season Champions Adelphi University for the NE-10 Championship match on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Admission for the NE-10 tournament matchup is free of charge and in the event of inclement weather, the match will be played at Hempstead Lake Indoor Tennis.
Stonehill (13-3, 10-2 NE-10), which is making its record 17th NE-10 Tournament appearance, advanced to its record tenth title match with a 5-3 victory at second-seeded Southern New Hampshire University on Friday. Senior Analise Kump (Falmouth, Maine/Falmouth) and sophomore Victoria Barbetta (Wesley Chapel, Florida/Saddlebrook Prep) led Stonehill as double-winners, delivering a clutch 2-1 edge for the Skyhawks following doubles play with their 8-4 decision at No. 2. Kump earned Stonehill's first singles win as she cruised past Yolanda Green 6-0, 6-2 at No. 3 and then Barbetta drew the Skyhawks within a point of the championship match with a 7-6 (7-4), 6-3 triumph at No. 4 against Kaitlyn Poje for her tenth straight singles win. Sophomore Emma Prinos (Foxboro, Massachusetts/Foxboro) clinched the postseason win for the second straight match as she swept past freshman Rachel Wagner at No. 6 singles 6-2, 6-2. Stonehill earned a 5-1 triumph over sixth-seeded Le Moyne College in Wednesday's first round.
Adelphi (14-0, 12-0 NE-10) advanced to its second NE-10 Championship match with a 5-0 sweep of fourth-seeded Merrimack College on Friday. The Panthers swept the three doubles matches to take a big lead before sophomore Elizabeth Kallenberg (Port Washington, New York/Paul D. Schreiber) and classmate Rebecca Fakas (Little Neck, New York/Benjamin N. Cardozo) sealed the win in singles play. Kallenberg combined with freshman Samantha Perri (Floral Park, New York/Floral Park) for an 8-3 win at No. 2 doubles before rallying for a 2-6, 6-3, 6-1 triumph at No. 2 singles over Chealsey Giatrellis for the match clinching point. Fakas was also a double-winner, teaming up with freshman Elena Nastasi (Mill Neck, New York/Locust Valley) for an 8-3 win at No. 3 doubles and then pulling the Panthers within a point of the win with a 6-1, 6-2 decision over Lauren Persson at No .4 singles.
Sophomore Victoria Barbetta hasn't lost a singles match in NE-10 play this fall. |
Stonehill, which has reached the NE-10 Championship match six of the last seven years and ten of the last 13 overall, captured the NE-10 tournament crown last fall as the No. 3 seed, defeating Merrimack in the final, 5-3, after the Warriors upset Adelphi in the semis. The Skyhawks also won the title in 2009 and 2013, while winning two championships under the old flighted points system in 1991 and '92 before the league switched to its present format in 1999.
Stonehill features an experienced lineup that returns four members of last year's NE-10 Championship lineup, five with postseason experience overall, with its four seniors seeking to capture the third NE-10 title of their careers. The Skyhawks are winners of ten of 11 heading into Sunday's final, the lone loss a 5-4 setback to Adelphi in Easton, Massachusetts, on October 12. Kump, the NE-10 Championship MVP last fall and Barbetta lead Stonehill into the postseason having posted a combined 52-12 record this season, both earning All-Northeast-10 Conference honors this fall.
Kump is a combined 22-6 in singles and doubles play this fall, posting a 10-2 singles record, including 9-1 in NE-10 play, with a 5-2 mark at No. 2 and 5-0 at No. 3. She is 12-4 in doubles play, including 7-2 in the NE-10, teaming up with Barbetta for an 11-4 record, including 7-2 in the NE-10. Barbetta has posted a combined singles and doubles record of 30-6, posting a 17-2 singles record, including a perfect 12-0 record against NE-10 competition, with a 7-0 record at both No. 3 and No. 4 to go with a win at No. 3. The doubles team earned second team All-Northeast-10 honors this fall.
Freshman Nicole Downey (Groveland, Massachusetts/Pentucket Regional), named to the All-Northeast-10 third team and an All-Rookie Team pick, has made an immediate contribution in her first collegiate season, posting a combined record of 29-3. She has a 16-1 singles record, including 8-1 against NE-10 opposition, going 4-0 at No. 5 and 3-1 at No. 6. Downey has posted a 13-2 doubles record, including 9-1 in the NE-10, combining with senior Kirsti Toegemann (Narragansett, Rhode Island/The Lincoln School) for a 7-2 record, including 4-1 in the NE-10.
Senior Analise Kump aims to lead the Skyhawks to a third NE-10 title over her four year career. |
Toegemann is a combined 15-9 in singles and doubles play this fall, posting a 4-4 singles record, while Prinos, a first team All-Northeast-10 performer this fall, has added a 10-4 singles record, including 9-1 versus the NE-10. Senior Bailey Paradiso (Birmingham, Michigan/Marian) rounds out the Skyhawks lineup at No. 1 singles, while teaming up with Prinos at No. 1 doubles.
Adelphi making its seventh NE-10 Tournament appearance, seeks its first Northeast-10 Tournament Championship since joining the league in 2009, despite winning the regular season crown the last two seasons and having won 29-straight regular season NE-10 matches. The Panthers made their only previous finals appearance in the spring of 2014, falling to Merrimack 5-3.
Adelphi boasts five All-Northeast-10 Conference performers, led by Perri who collected first team honors at No. 5 singles as well as No. 2 doubles with Kallenberg. Perri has yet to lose a singles or doubles match in her rookie season, posting a combined record of 27-0. She has a 13-0 singles record, including 9-0 at No. 5, to go with a 14-0 doubles mark, including 13-0 with Kallenberg. Fakas and Nastasi earned first team All-NE-10 honors at No. 3 doubles, having combined for an 11-1 mark, including 9-1 in the NE-10.
Fakas is a combined 25-2 in singles and doubles play, posting a 12-1 singles mark, including 10-1 in the NE-10 to earn second team All-Conference honors at No. 4. Nastasi is a combined 20-4, including 8-3 for singles. Freshman Karen Serina (East Islip, New York/East Islip) rounds out the Panthers All-Conference performers and is a combined 17-6, including 8-2 in singles play with a 7-2 mark at No. 3.
Adelphi held off Stonehill for a 5-4 win in the regular season matchup between the two in Easton 12 days ago after the Panthers swept the three doubles matches. Perri led Adelphi by posting victories at both No. 2 doubles and No. 5 singles, the latter of which clinched the team win after the Panthers took control by sweeping the three doubles matches. Perri and Kallenberg combined to post an 8-4 victory at No. 2 doubles and then Perri clinched the win for the Panthers with her 6-3, 6-4 decision at No. 5 singles that dealt Downey her lone singles loss of the season. Sophomore Stefani Lineva (Middle Village, New York/Forest Hills) and Serina teamed up for an 8-5 win at No. 1 doubles for the Panthers, while Fakas and Nastasi combined for an 8-5 decision at No. 3 doubles.
Despite the 3-0 deficit following doubles play, Stonehill rallied by winning four of the six singles matches to get back in the match. Paradiso put the Skyhawks on the board with a 4-0 lead in the first set when Lineva retired. Kump added a 6-3, 6-4 win at No. 3 singles against Serina, while Barbetta claimed a 6-3, 6-4 win over Fakas at No. 4 singles. Prinos chipped in with a 6-3, 6-2 win at No. 6 singles over Nastasi.
The winner of Sunday's championship match will earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament next spring.
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2015 Northeast-10 Conference
Women's Tennis Tournament
First Round
Wednesday, October 21
#3 Stonehill 5, #6 Le Moyne 1
#4 Merrimack 5, #5 Assumption 1
Semifinal
Friday, October 23
#3 Stonehill 5, #2 Southern N.H. 3
#1 Adelphi 5, #4 Merrimack 0
Championship
Sunday, October 25
#3 Stonehill (13-3, 10-2 NE-10) at #1 Adelphi (14-0, 12-0 NE-10), 1 p.m.