Women's Tennis | 10/12/2026 9:30:00 AM
SUNY Geneseo, St. John Fisher University, Hartwick College, Nazareth University, SUNY Brockport and Alfred University will vie for the 2026 Empire 8 Women’s Tennis Championship, which takes place with first round action on Tuesday, Oct. 13, followed by semifinal contests on Friday, Oct. 16 and the championship match Saturday, Oct. 17.
No. 3 seed Hartwick will host No. 6 Alfred in a one first round match at 3 p.m. Tuesday and No. 4 Nazareth is set to host No. 5 SUNY Brockport in opening round action at 4 p.m. Tuesday. From there, top-seed SUNY Geneseo will host the semifinals and championship matches. On Friday, the top-seeded Knights will face the winner of Nazareth/Brockport in the first semifinal at 11 a.m., while No. 2 seed St. John Fisher will take on the winner of Hartwick/Alfred in the second semifinal match at 2 p.m. The two semifinal winners will meet for the 2026 Empire 8 Championship on Saturday at 1 p.m. Hartwick is looking for its third straight league championship and fourth in the last four seasons.
The league champion receives an automatic berth into the 2027 NCAA Division III Women’s Tennis Championship, which takes place starting May 14-16 with first, second and third round action. The 2026 NCAA Division III Women’s Tennis Finals take place from May 24 - June 1.
SUNY Geneseo, who advanced to the Empire 8 Championship match in its first two seasons as a league member in is undefeated heading into the league championship tournament, earning the No. 1 seed with an 8-0 record in league play, having won 55-of-56 points in those matches. Geneseo is 62-3 in singles play overall this season. Natalie Pipes has excelled at first singles, while Samantha Rava is 8-0 in league play second singles. Rachel Molloy, JoAnn Catalano, Lauren Levatino and Talia Wutz are all also undefeated in singles play against E8 foes. Rava and Malloy are undefeated at second doubles, while Pipes and Catalano are a formidable first doubles team. Wutz and Levatino have also excelled at third doubles in league play.
St. John Fisher, the No. 2 seed, clinched an Empire 8 postseason berth for the ninth time in the last 10 seasons and is attempting to win its second league championship, having previously earned the 2019 title. The Cardinals are 7-3 overall, having finished 6-2 in league play. Adriana Colafrancheschi is 8-1 at second singles, while Isabella Busch is 7-2 at third singles. Lily Miller enters the tournament with a 5-4 mark at first singles. On the doubles side, Maura Matthews is 5-0 having shuffled between the second and third position.
Hartwick enters the tournament as the No. 3 seed and is looking to earn its third straight E8 title and fourth overall after finishing 6-2 in league play this season. Hartwick is making its 16th appearance in the Empire 8 Tournament. Samantha Lantzy is 9-2 at first singles, while Elise Beauharnois has seven singles wins throughout the lineup. Gianna Leggieri and Autumn Millington have six singles wins each. Lantzy has eight doubles wins, having teamed with Leggieri to record a 5-1 mark at first doubles.
Nazareth is looking to win its seventh league championship in program history. The Golden Flyers went 5-3 in league play during the regular season. Lily Brady has excelled at first singles with a 6-3 mark, while Anna Spencer is 6-3 at second singles. Paige Masrouri leads Nazareth with seven singles wins at the fourth spot. Spencer and Brady are 7-2 at first singles, while Mansouri and Lia Ferro are 6-3 at third doubles.
SUNY Brockport is in the E8 Tournament for the second time in three seasons as a league member. The Golden Eagles went 4-4 in league play to secure the No. 5 seed. Kate Tabor enters the tourney with a 9-1 record at sixth singles, while Gianna Masker is 8-2 at fifth singles. Masker and Kathleen Rogers are 7-3 at third doubles, while Mackenzie King and Samantha Basovsky are also 7-3 at second doubles. Leah Banes and Cara Vasile are also key contributors for Brockport.
Alfred University, the 2023 Empire 8 Champions, is the No. 6 seed. The Saxons finished 4-4 in league play. Becca Epping is 8-4 in singles play, having played the first, second and third positions. Alexis Gitz is 6-2, while Elizabeth Madsen, the 2023 E8 Rookie of the Year, has four singles wins. Epping and Alyssa Seegert are 5-5 at first doubles, while Madsen and Camryn Moore have excelled at second doubles.
No. 3 Hartwick and No. 6 Houghton will meet for the second time in four days. The Hawks ended the regular season with a 7-0 win over Alfred on Oct. 10, while the Nazareth outlasted SUNY Brockport, 4-3 on Sept. 18.
This 2026 Empire 8 Women’s Tennis Tournament Championship schedule is below. For the most up to date information on this year's championship, follow the Empire 8 Conference on X and Instagram (@Empire8).
2026 Empire 8 Women's Tennis Championship Schedule
Tuesday, October 13 – First Round (at Higher Seed)
No. 6 Alfred University at No. 3 Hartwick College – 3 p.m.
No. 5 SUNY Brockport at No. 4 Nazareth University – 4 p.m.
^ Friday, October 16 – Semifinals (hosted by SUNY Geneseo)
Outdoor – SUNY Geneseo Tennis Courts
Indoor – Houghton University
No. 1 SUNY Geneseo vs. Winner of No. 4 Nazareth/No. 5 Brockport – 11 a.m.
No. 2 St. John Fisher vs. Winner of No. 3 Hartwick/No. 6 Alfred -
2 p.m.
^ Saturday, October 17 Championship (hosted by SUNY Geneseo)
Outdoor – SUNY Geneseo Tennis Courts
Indoor – Houghton University
Winner of Semifinal #1 vs. Winner of Semifinal #2 – 1 p.m.
Postseason: Clinch-Clinch Format:
- – Doubles matches played until one team wins two of the three doubles matches. If one team wins two doubles matches before the third is finished, the third match is unfinished.
- – Singles matches played until the winning team earns four points (between doubles and singles) to clinch the match. Any matches that are not completed go into the stats as unfinished.