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CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. -- Christopher Newport women's tennis junior Reagan Delp inserted her name among the program's elite with an historic performance at the 2021 NCAA Division III Women's Tennis Singles National Championship on Friday, winning a pair of matches and becoming the first Captain in program history to advance to the national quarterfinal round. Competing at The Champions Club in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Delp won her opening round match 6-1, 6-0 and followed it with a momentous 6-3, 6-4 win in the Round of 16. 

"I'm very proud and happy for Reagan after today's results," said head coach David Weiner. "She worked very hard to get prepared for this and it's great to see her focus and effort pay off so far. She played in tough conditions today, but still found a way to get to her best level. We look forward to trying to do that again tomorrow."

In Friday morning's opening round, Delp was pit against Ally Persky, a veteran of the postseason from nationally-ranked Washington University (Mo.) in St. Louis. Taking on the 2018 doubles All-American, the CNU junior breezed into the second round. 

It was a dominant performance from the Roanoke, Va. native, who was one of only two players to dispatch of their opponents without surrendering more than a single game. Delp's 6-1, 6-0 outing was bested only by Johns Hopkins' Anjali Kashyap with a 6-0, 6-0 win in her bout.

With the win, Delp became only the second ever CNU Women's Tennis player to win a match at the NCAA Division III National Championships, and the first to do so in 39 years. The Captains' first ever national qualifier, Vicki Nebinger, reached the second round in 1982. Furthermore, Delp is only the fifth Captain, men's or women's, to win a match at the national championship event joining Hall of Famers Holden Knight, John Mook, and Eric Shulman on the men's side.

CNU Tennis Winners at NCAA Singles National Championship
Vicki Nebinger (1-1) in 1982
Holden Knight (3-1 - national semifinalist) in 1993
John Mook (1-1) in 2008
Eric Shulman (1-1) in 2012
Reagan Delp (2-0) in 2021

Following the already historic win, Delp set out to shatter the standard set over the course of nearly a half-century of women's tennis at Christopher Newport. Taking on 8th-seeded Risa Fukushige from Skidmore College, Delp had another challenging opponent on the first day. Fukushige was a two-time Singles All-American and won the Conference Player of the Year plaque all three years it was distributed in her career. 

Despite the fierce competition, Delp thrived, racing out to an early lead in both sets. She cruised to a 5-0 lead in the first before Fukushige finally broke her serve for the first time. With plenty of room for error, Delp did not allow momentum to shift in favor of her foe and picked up the sixth game for a 6-3 win in the opening set. In the second, Delp went up 4-1 before the Skidmore player responded with a pair of wins to close within one, but Delp replied right back with two of the next three for a 6-4 finish. 

With the win, Delp now stands alone in program history as the lone national quarterfinalist in women's tennis history and one of only two, including men's players, to advance as deep into the postseason event. Her performance will be recognized as the first All-American season for Christopher Newport women's tennis following the conclusion of the tournament.

As one of the final eight players remaining, she will now face top-seeded Ysabel Gonzalez-Rico from Emory in Saturday's quarterfinal round at 9:00 a.m. The four-time singles All-American is the defending champion after winning the national title as a sophomore in 2019. Live stats and live video will be available for all the action and links can be found at the top of this page and on the women's tennis schedule at CNUsports.com.