TOPEKA, Kan. – The No. 17 nationally-ranked Washburn women's tennis team took a 5-2 victory over conference foe Northwest Missouri on Saturday afternoon to conclude regular season play. The team is set to compete in the MIAA Championship in Edmond, Okla., on April 30-May 1 with the bracket to be set by the conference tomorrow.
The Ichabods recognized graduating seniors
Logan Morrissey and
Maria Soler Valverde at the conclusion of the match. Morrissey joined the team as a freshman in 2016 and has dominated in doubles play, including setting the most career doubles wins (91) in Washburn history. Soler Valverde joined the team as a transfer in 2018 and currently sits at ninth all-time in best singles record percentage (.814) in program history.
The Ichabods dominated doubles action as they won all three matches.
Svea Crohn and Soler Valverde started things off with a 6-2 victory from the third court.
Marta Torres and Morrissey then followed with a 6-3 triumph from the top of the lineup. The duo of
Maja Jung and
Kinsey Fields then ensured the doubles sweep as they defeated their Bearcats opposition by 6-4 in the middle spot.
Washburn kept the momentum going into singles action as Soler Valverde got it going with a 6-2, 6-3 victory from the third spot. After Northwest Missouri got their first point of the match at the second court, Torres got the Ichabods back on track. Torres battled and took down Northwest Missouri's Vera Alenicheva, the No. 15 nationally-ranked singles player, by set scores of 6-4, 0-6, 6-2. This is her first win over a nationally-ranked opponent this season.
The train kept rolling as Jung then clinched the Washburn win as she defeated her opponent by set scores of 7-6 (8-6), 6-1 from the No. 4 spot. Morrissey won the Ichabods final point of the match as she persevered through a long battle at the fifth spot, ultimately taking down her opponent by scores of 2-6, 6-3, 1-0 (10-7).
Cadence Lynn fell to her opponent after a long battle at the bottom of the lineup, but Washburn still came out victorious by 5-2 over Northwest Missouri.
The Ichabods improve to 15-1 overall record with a 7-1 record in MIAA play. The Bearcats slip to 10-6 overall and 6-2 in conference action.
Washburn will compete in the MIAA Championship on April 30-May 1 at the Edmond Center Court in Edmond, Okla. The schedule will be released after the last MIAA regular season matches on Sunday.
The squad is also currently on the list of schools under consideration for the NCAA regional for the Central Region. The selection committee will determine who the regional brackets on May 4.
