NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Freshman
Tessa Trate headlined the first release of the Atlantic South regional rankings from the NCAA this week as Christopher Newport, ranked No. 6 in the area, featured one doubles tandem and two singles players in the rankings. Trate hauled in a spot in both singles and doubles for her first career recognition.
The rankings were released on NCAA.com this Sunday, April 18 with the Captains pegged the No. 6 ranked team in the Atlantic South. Emory led the region while Carnegie Mellon, Johns Hopkins, Mary Washington and Washington & Lee rounded out the top five.
CNU is 5-4 overall this season with a 3-1 record in conference play. Two of the four losses have come to Division I competition, while the other two were against teams ranked ahead of them in the regional rankings.
In the singles rankings, junior
Reagan Delp was the top-ranked Captain settling in at No. 8 in the Atlantic South. Trate then checks in at No. 12 as CNU is one of only two teams in the region with a pair of players in the top-12 rankings. Delp has taken a stranglehold on the No. 1 position in singles for the Captains, posting a 5-3 record this season.
Trate has been exceptional in her debut season with just one loss in six singles appearances, all at No. 2. Trate's lone setback came in an absolute battle with 11th-ranked Gabi Moss (W&L) as the two went toe-to-toe before the Generals leader won 6-2, 6-7 (4), 11-9. In addition to playing well against top-tier Division III players, Trate also posted a straight set win over Division I Norfolk State in her first collegiate appearance.
She has been joined by
Amanda Yermal in doubles play and the Captains tandem were pegged the No. 6 ranked duo in the region. Playing exclusively on the top line, Trate and Yermal have posted a 6-2 record to lead a dominant doubles offense for the Captains this season. Like in singles, Trate captured a win over Division I competition in her initial showing as she and Yermal won 8-5. The top line pairing has won four of their last five matches with the only loss coming to fifth-ranked Taylor Garcia and Margaret Carlton from Washington & Lee.
Christopher Newport will welcome the Generals to Newport News for a rematch this Saturday, April 24. Friday's match against Virginia Wesleyan has been cancelled, but the Captains will still take on W&L at 2:00 p.m.
CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE REGIONAL RANKINGS - APRIL 18, 2021
