SEWANEE, Tenn. – In a match that came down to the final singles court, the Sewanee women's tennis team battled to the wire but ultimately fell to No. 26 Kenyon, 4-3, in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday afternoon.
The Tigers came out strong in doubles play, claiming the opening point.
Brooke Despriet and
Ansley Carpenter cruised to a 6-1 win at No. 1 doubles, and after Kenyon evened things with a win at No. 2,
Mariella Congeni and
Sarah Livingston secured the point with a 6-3 victory at No. 3 to give Sewanee a 1-0 lead heading into singles.
Kenyon answered quickly in singles, earning wins at No. 2 and No. 3 to take a 2-1 lead.
Ivy Wilson brought the match back level with a 6-3, 6-1 win at No. 5, but the Owls pulled back in front with a win at No. 1. Carpenter took the opening set 6-4, but Kenyon's Eleni Lazaridou rallied for a three-set victory.
Despriet kept the Tigers alive with a gritty straight-sets win at No. 4, taking a tiebreak in the first set and closing it out 7-6 (7), 6-3 in a match that lasted over two and a half hours. With the match tied 3-3, all eyes turned to No. 6 singles.
Emma Caldwell fought valiantly in a marathon battle that stretched nearly four hours. After dropping the first set 6-3, Caldwell stormed back to take the second 7-5, but ultimately fell just short in a 7-5 third set as Kenyon clinched the match.
Sewanee finishes the season with a 16-6 record and made its 11th NCAA Tournament appearance in the last 12 seasons, excluding 2020 due to COVID-19.
Despriet and Carpenter will continue their season at the NCAA Individual Doubles Championship, set for May 23 at the Biszantz Family Tennis Center in Claremont, California, hosted by Claremont-Mudd-Scripps.
