Morelia, Mexico, sophomore honored for second-straight week and third time of her career
NE10 Women's Tennis Weekly Report
EASTON, Mass. (April 20, 2021) – Stonehill College sophomore Cristina Solorzano Valencia has been named the Northeast-10 Conference's Player of the Week in women's tennis for the second-straight week by the league office today.
Solorzano Valencia led Stonehill to a pair of NE10 wins, posting a combined 4-0 record at No. 1 singles and doubles for the week. She opened the week as a double-winner in Wednesday's 7-0 victory over Assumption University, teaming up with sophomore Steffi Antao to clinch the doubles point with their 6-3 win at No. 1. Solorzano Valencia followed that up with a 6-3, 7-5 triumph over former NE10 Player of the Year Julia Chappell. Solorzano Valencia and Antao also clinched the doubles point in Sunday's 4-0 win at regionally-ranked Le Moyne College, with a 6-4 win. She capped the week with a commanding 6-1, 6-1 win at No. 1 singles against Dolphins junior Birdem Oz, ranked No. 7 in the East Region singles rankings.
Solorzano Valencia, ranked No. 6 in the Oracle/ITA Division II East Region singles rankings, has posted a combined 10-4 record in singles and doubles play so far this season. She is 4-1 in her singles matches at the top flight for the Skyhawks, including a 2-0 record against regionally-ranked opposition, while posting a 6-3 doubles mark with two different playing partners at No. 1 doubles. Solorzano Valencia and Antao are 5-2 as a pairing for the Skyhawks, having won their last five matches.
Solorzano Valencia, who was ranked No. 7 in the Oracle/ITA East Region doubles rankings with former playing partner Annelise Howick, '20, earned All-NE10 second team honors at No. 1 singles and No. 2 doubles as a freshman for Stonehill in 2019. She was also named to the NE10 All-Rookie Team and NE10 Tournament All-Championship team, while reaching the quarterfinals of the 2019 USTA/ITA Division II East Region singles championship, while she and Howick made the semifinals of the USTA/ITA East Region doubles championship – marking the deepest run at the tournament by a Stonehill entry in program history.
Solorzano Valencia was named the NE10 Rookie of the Week on three occasions during the Fall 2019 season, picking up NE10 Player of the Week accolades for the first time on October 22, 2019. She has been named to the NE10 Academic Honor Roll each of the last two semesters, with Academic Distinction status for the Fall 2020 semester for having a GPA between 3.50 and 3.99 and earned Athletic Director's Honor Roll status as well.
Stonehill, ranked No. 8 in the most recent Oracle/ITA Division II East Region rankings and listed among teams under consideration by the NCAA Division II Championships selection committee, rounds out its regular season schedule on Thursday, when it hosts Saint Michael's College for Senior Day at Charles Watt Tennis Courts at 3 p.m. The Skyhawks can clinch a first round bye for the upcoming NE10 Tournament with a win.
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