Christopher Wiechert ’14 closed out his Sagehen career with a dominant doubles win against No. 1 CMS.
Claremont, Calif (May 12, 2014) This week in Sagehens athletics saw the Men’s Tennis and Women’s Teams teams pick up NCAA wins to advance to the regional finals, while Women’s Lacrosse competed in its first-ever NCAA Tournament.
Men’s Tennis advanced to the NCAA regional finals with a 5-1 win over Texas-Tyler in the semis on Friday. The Sagehens earned a 2-1 lead after doubles with a pair of tight wins, as Graham Maassen ’17 and Connor Hudson PO ’15 earned a comeback 9-7 win at No. 3, and Christopher Wiechert ’14 and Anthony Bello PO ’17 earned a late break at No. 1 to win 9-7 as well. Jacob Yasgoor ’17 earned a 6-3, 6-1 win at No. 1 singles, winning 12 of the final 13 games after falling in a 3-0 hole early, while Maassen earned a singles win at No. 4.
The Sagehens gave No. 1 CMS a strong run in the final round with Wiechert and Bello producing a dominant closeout in an 8-4 victory in doubles, winning 12 of the final 13 points of the match to pick up their second win against No. 1 CMS this season. Yasgoor and Wiechert each took the first set in singles at No. 1 and No. 2, but CMS was able to get the clinching point at No. 5 singles before either could complete their matches.
Women’s Tennis picked up two NCAA Tournament wins, defeating UC Santa Cruz 5-0 and La Verne 5-2 to advance to the regional finals against CMS. The Sagehens swept doubles in both contests, turning the tables on La Verne which defeated the Sagehens 7-2 in the SCIAC semifinals after sweeping doubles.
This time around, Claire Willey ’14 moved into the lineup at No. 3 doubles and helped the Sagehens cruise to an 8-1 win for the first point in the match. The team used that momentum to pick up 8-6 wins at No. 1 and No. 2 doubles and then went on to take the 5-2 win. The Sagehens got off to a slow start against CMS, falling behind 3-0 after doubles and eventually dropping the regional final contest 5-0.
Women’s Lacrosse played in its first-ever NCAA Tournament game at Redlands on Saturday, but the Bulldogs were able to close out the first half on a 7-0 run to take a 9-2 lead into the break and went on to a 14-6 win. Aubrey Douglass ’16 had the first two goals for the Sagehens, while Sarah Markowitz ’16 added a pair of second-half goals. The team finished the year 16-5 shattering the program record for wins in a season (11). Jana London ’14 earned first-team All-SCIAC honors for the Sagehens, while Markowitz and Douglass were named to the second team.
Softball also added a postseason honor as Ashley Morello ’15 was named to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-West Region team. Morello hit .412 on the year as the team’s leadoff hitter, and was a second-team All-SCIAC selection.
Team play for the academic year has concluded, but several individuals will move on to compete in NCAA Championships. Paul Messana ’17 is virtually guaranteed an invitation to the NCAA Division III Track and field Championships from May 22-24 in the 800 meters, where he will be a strong candidate for All-America honors.
