FREDERICKSBURG, Va. -- The 40th-ranked Christopher Newport women's tennis season culminated in their first ever Capital Athletic Conference Championship appearance, set for Sunday morning against top-seeded Mary Washington. The Captains (14-5) will take on the perennial power Eagles on their home court, starting at 11:00 am.
CNU seeks its first ever CAC Championship taking on Mary Washington, winners of 22 of 24 CAC women's tennis championships. The last conference title for CNU came in 2006, in the first USA South Athletic Conference Championship.
This season, the Captains have enjoyed a historical year that included the program's first ever national ranking. With a roster that includes only freshmen and sophomores, Christopher Newport has impressed while enduring a difficult schedule that included ten regionally-ranked opponents. The Captains are 7-3 against regionally-ranked foes this season, and have lost just one match against an in-region opponent.
That match, though, came against the Eagles at home just two weeks ago. CNU won two of three doubles matches to take a 2-1 lead, but the Mary Washington squad answered with a 5-1 mark in singles to capture a 6-3 win against the Captains. It is the only loss against a Division III opponent since March 6, as the Captains has closed on an 8-1 run, including back-to-back wins against Salisbury to earn the championship berth.
The talented youth of Christopher Newport has been headlined by rookie top-line starter
McKinney Harwood, ranked 14th in the Atlantic South region in singles. She has an 11-6 overall record in duals this season, including a 3-3 record against regionally-ranked opponents. Fellow freshman
Kate Huck leads the team in singles wins, with 14, including a 6-0 record at No. 4 this season. Sophomore
Katie Carlson had the match-clinching win for the Captains in the CAC semifinals, and boasts a 13-4 mark in singles play as well.
The doubles teams have been strong all season, winning nearly 72% of all matches in duals this season. At No. 3, the Captains have only lost four times, as
Alexandra Drye and
Logan Eldridge lead the third tandem with a 9-1 mark this Spring. Drye has paired with Harwood for an 8-1 record in doubles, playing at No. 1 and No. 2.
Mary Washington will counter the Captains youth with a roster filled with proven veteran talent, led by junior Shelby Harris with 12 singles and 11 doubles wins this year. Fellow junior Chrissy Gaul has yet to lose at No. 3 singles and leads the team with 15 wins overall. Head coach Patrick Catullo has mixed up the doubles pairings all year with plenty of success, especially at No. 3. Nine different pairings have combined for a 16-5 record on the third line, led by Kait Brogan and Alina Suyama with a 5-0 mark.
Full scores and a recap will be available at CNUsports.com following the action.
