FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Simmons blanks Anna Maria, JWU takes down
Suffolk to set stage for Sunday's GNAC Championship

WINCHESTER, Mass. – Top-seeded Simmons College blanked fifth-seeded Anna Maria College, 6-0, on Saturday afternoon at the Winchester Indoor Lawn Tennis Center, earning the Sharks a trip to their 11th straight GNAC Women's Tennis Tournament title match on Sunday at 12:30 p.m.

The Sharks will take on second-seeded Johnson & Wales in Sunday's title match, as the Wildcats took down third-seeded Suffolk University, 5-2, in Saturday's second semifinal match in Winchester.

Live stats will be available for Sunday's match, and be sure to follow the GNAC (@TheGNAC) on Twitter for all the latest tournament news and updates.

For Simmons, junior Katie Crowley and first year Han DK Le were double winners on Saturday as the Sharks will now seek their seventh straight conference crown and 10th in the last 11 seasons. Simmons heads into the finals with a nine-match win streak and a 12-2 overall record. 

Crowley and Le picked up the first point of the day for the Sharks, defeating the Anna Maria sophomore duo of Marrissa Leonard and Jess Palmer, 8-0. The Sharks followed suit at first and second doubles as well with a pair of 8-0 pro-set victories. Simmons sophomore Theresa Reinhard combined with junior Meg Cokely to down the AMCATS pair of senior Nicole Goudreau and junior Katelyn Edelson at first doubles. The Simmons junior pair of Rachael Downey and Caroline Khoury gave their team a 3-0 lead with the victory over sophomore Callie Mulcahy and first year Nicola Zamira.

Le pushed the Sharks lead to 4-0 with a 6-0, 6-0 win over Leonard at fifth singles, before Crowley gave Simmons the deciding point of the match at number three singles with a 6-0, 6-1 triumph over Edelson. First year Mary Matthews picked up the final point of the afternoon for the Sharks with a 6-0, 6-0 decision over Palmer.

Johnson & Wales, which improved to 12-1 overall with the win, got out to a 2-1 lead following doubles play in Saturday's second semifinal, as the No. 1 doubles pair of senior Samantha Jo Borr and sophomore Morgan Thompson defeated Suffolk sophomore Aidiana Sagyndykova and senior Adrianna Garrett, 8-4. At No. 3 doubles, JWU freshman Taylor Klein and senior Stephanie Piperis handled the Rams freshmen pair of Jacqueline Nakamura and Isabel Rathlev, 8-1.

The Rams got their doubles triumph at No. 2 doubles, as the tandem of junior Rebecca Eshoo and junior Abby Trigilio knocked off the Wildcats pairing of junior Emily Glass and senior Gabrielle Longo, 9-8.

Sagyndykova registered Suffolk's lone win in singles action, defeating Borr, 6-1, 6-4, at top flight.

JWU's Glass took down Trigilio, 6-1, 6-1, at No. 4 singles, while Klein earned a 6-0, 6-1 victory over Rathlev at No. 6 singles.

Thompson's 6-1, 6-1 over Garrett at No. 2 singles sealed the match for the Wildcats, as the clincher came shortly after Sagyndykova's win at No. 1.

The Rams see their season come to an end at 8-7 overall.

Simmons match information provided by Simmons Athletics Communications.

Founded in 1995, the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 12 member institutions and over 3,000 student-athletes across the New England region. Each year, the GNAC sponsors and administers 17 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement.

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