Nazareth Heads To Tufts For NCAA Tournament; Set to Face Rhode Island College In First Round
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Rochester, NY – The Nazareth College women's tennis team will be heading to Tufts University this weekend for the opening rounds of the NCAA Division III Women's Tennis Championships. Nazareth, winners of the Empire 8 Conference, earned an automatic bid and will face off against Rhode Island College in the First Round on Friday (5/11) with the match time still to be announced. The Anchormen are the Little East Conference Champions with a perfect 16-0 record to their credit.
Tufts, which earned an at-large bid out of the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC), serves as the regional host of the seven-team pod, which includes the Jumbos, Nazareth, Rhode Island College, Colby-Sawyer, Johnson & Wales, MIT and John Jay.
The Golden Flyers are making their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2002 and first-ever under the direction of head coach
Paul Waida. Nazareth finished its fall portion of the schedule with an unblemished 11-0 record, including going 8-0 in league play to earn the top overall seed for the conference championships. After defeating Houghton 5-0 in the semifinals, Nazareth edged out Stevens, 5-4, in the championship to take the conference crown. With the match tied at 4-4, Maelah Nadeau rallied to earn the clinching point at second singles after dropping the opening set.
Nazareth comes into the tournament at 14-4 overall after going 3-4 in its spring contests.
Rhode Island was also its conference regular season and tournament champions to earn the NCAA selection. In the finals on October 21, 2017, Rhode Island defeated Bridegwater State 5-1 – that was the last match played by the Anchormen. Rhode Island College has now won seven conference championships, however, 2017 marked its first crown since 2005.
In all, 49 teams were selected to compete in the 2018 NCAA Division III Women's Tennis Championships. The teams will play a single-elimination tournament with the first, second and third rounds played at regional sites, Friday-Sunday, May 11-13, or Thursday-Saturday, May 10-12. The regional held at Tufts will be Friday-Sunday.