The NCAA News - News and Features

May 19, 1997

Kenyon continues string of odd-year titles in III women's tennis

Repeat champions are common in NCAA championships, but not in Division III women's tennis.

For the 16th consecutive year, Division III has crowned a new champion as Kenyon claimed the women's team title May 6-12 at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps.

Erin Hockman and Amy Rowland rallied from one-set singles deficits and Kenyon won two of three doubles matches to defeat Trinity (Texas), 6-3, and claim the victory.

Kenyon's triumph ended Emory's bid for a second consecutive title. No team has won back-to-back championships.

Kenyon, which claimed the 1993 and 1995 titles, ranks second all-time behind UC San Diego for most team titles. UC San Diego has won four titles.

Trinity, which finished third in 1996, earned its highest finish yet.

Emory outlasted Washington and Lee in the third-place match.

Nao Kinoshita of Rhodes swept the individual championships, winning her second singles title and teaming with Taylor Tarver to claim the doubles crown.

Hockman and Rowland propelled Kenyon to a 4-2 lead after singles play in the team championship as they rallied to victories at Nos. 3 and 4 singles, respectively.

Hockman dropped the first set to Lola Taylor before posting 6-1 and 6-4 triumphs. Rowland also dropped the first set to Suzanne Singleton before knotting the match with a second-set win. Rowland secured the victory by outlasting Singleton, 7-5, in the third and deciding set.

Rowland teamed with Codi Scarbrough at No. 3 doubles to help Kenyon clinch the title. The duo cruised to an 8-1 victory over Christy Wussow and Amanda Browne.

Kinoshita became the third individual to win two singles titles when she defeated Jamie Levine of Skidmore. Kinoshita dropped only one set in five singles matches.

Levine finished as runner-up for the second consecutive year.

Kinoshita and Tarver completed the Rhodes sweep of the individual championships by downing Kenyon's Hockman and Ali St. Vincent. Kinoshita is the fourth individual to win both titles in the same year.

Division III women's tennis

TEAM RESULTS

First round

Williams 6, UC San Diego 3; Gust. Adolphus 8, Mary Washington 1; Wash. & Lee 8, Pomona-Pitzer 1; Amherst 6, Sewanee 3; Trinity (Tex.) 5, Washington (Mo.) 4; Claremont-M-S 6, Skidmore 3.

Quarterfinals

Kenyon 8, Williams 1; Wash. & Lee 6, Gust. Adolphus 3; Trinity (Tex.) 6, Amherst 3; Emory 6, Claremont-M-S 3.

Semifinals

Kenyon 6, Wash. & Lee 3; Trinity (Tex.) 5, Emory 4.

Third place

Emory 5, Wash. & Lee 4

Singles -- No. 1: Natalia Garcia, Wash. & Lee, def. Alexa Wilensky, Emory, 6-1, 7-5; No. 2: Ericka Shapard, Wash. & Lee, def. Adrian Poole, Emory, 6-4, 6-0; No. 3: Katie Kirschbaum, Emory, def. Berry Blankinship, Wash. & Lee, 6-3, 4-6, 6-2; No. 4: Megan Bern, Emory, def. Brook Hartzell, Wash. & Lee, 6-3, 6-2; No. 5: Julie Sterner, Emory, def. Anna O'Connor, Wash. & Lee, 6-2, 6-0; No. 6: Erin Eggers, Wash. & Lee, def. Stephanie LeShaw, Emory, 6-3, 7-5.

Doubles -- No. 1: Kirschbaum-Sterner, Emory, def. Garcia-Hartzell, Wash. & Lee, 8-6; No. 2: Blankinship-Shapard, Wash. & Lee, def. Bern-LeShaw, Emory, 8-3; No. 3: Wilensky-Poole, Emory, def. Mary Celeste Foster-O'Connor, Wash. & Lee, 8-1.

Championship

Kenyon 6, Trinity (Tex.) 3

Singles -- No. 1: Laura Brady, Trinity (Tex.), def. Caryn Cuthbert, Kenyon, 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5); No. 2: Ali St. Vincent, Kenyon, def. Vanessa Hill, Trinity (Tex.), 6-3, 7-6 (4); No. 3: Erin Hockman, Kenyon, def. Lola Taylor, Trinity (Tex.), 2-6, 6-1, 6-4; No. 4: Amy Rowland, Kenyon, def. Suzanne Singleton, Trinity (Tex.), 2-6, 6-4, 7-5; No. 5: Christy Wussow, Trinity (Tex.), def. Renee Brown, Kenyon, 6-2, 6-2; No. 6: Aki Ohata, Kenyon, def. Amanda Browne, Trinity (Tex.), 6-3, 3-6, 6-2.

Doubles -- No. 1: Brady-Hill, Trinity (Tex.), def. Hockman-St. Vincent, Kenyon, 9-8 (2); No. 2: Brown-Cuthbert, Kenyon, def. Taylor-Singleton, Trinity (Tex.), 8-5; No. 3: Rowland-Codi Scarbrough, Kenyon, def. Wussow-Browne, Trinity (Tex.), 8-1.

INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

Singles

First round: Elina Tolppa, Averett, def. Deborah Denio, Chapman, 2-6, 6-4, 6-2; Phoebe Anderson, Carleton, def. Anabel Flores, Washington (Md.), 6-2, 6-1; Jamie Levine, Skidmore, def. Jill Kossman, Luther, 6-2, 6-2; Audrey Coates, Hope, def. Betsy Parker, Guilford, 6-3, 6-2; Claire Turchi, Pomona-Pitzer, def. Adrian Poole, Emory, 6-2, 6-4; Kirsten Erickson, Mary Washington, def. Sabrina Oei, Williams, 6-2, 4-6, 6-2; Caryn Cuthbert, Kenyon, def. Corey Shapiro, Nazareth (N.Y.), 6-0, 2-6, 6-2; Eve Halderson, Kalamazoo, def. Jennifer Olmos, UC Santa Cruz, 6-2, 1-6, 7-5.

Kanta Murali, Smith, def. Stephanie Curwen, UC Santa Cruz, 7-5, 6-2; Katy Lowe, DePauw, def. Alexa Wilensky, Emory, 6-2, 6-3; Inke Noel, Skidmore, def. Kerry Jensen, St. Olaf, 6-1, 6-1; Ericka Shapard, Wash. & Lee, def. Keri Mills, Carnegie Mellon, 6-3, 6-1; Susan Huberman, UC San Diego, def. Lisa Broughten, Gust. Adolphus, 7-6 (1), 6-3; Laura Brady, Trinity (Tex.), def. Mealani Nakamura, MIT, 6-0, 7-5; Pam Diamond, Amherst, def. Mary Missbach, Sewanee, 6-4, 6-3; Nao Kinoshita, Rhodes, def. Ali St. Vincent, 6-4, 6-3.

Second round: Tolppa, Averett, def. Anderson, Carleton, 6-0, 7-5; Levine, Skidmore, def. Coates, Hope, 6-3, 6-3; Turchi, Pomona-Pitzer, def. Erickson, Mary Washington, 6-0, 6-1; Cuthbert, Kenyon, def. Halderson, Kalamazoo, 1-6, 6-1, 6-3; Lowe, DePauw, def. Murali, Smith, 6-1, 6-1; Noel, Skidmore, def. Shapard, Wash. & Lee, 7-6 (8), 6-2; Brady, Trinity (Tex.), def. Huberman, UC San Diego, 6-1, 6-1; Kinoshita, Rhodes, def. Diamond, Amherst, 6-4, 6-3.

Quarterfinals: Levine, Skidmore, def. Tolppa, Averett, 6-0, 7-5; Cuthbert, Kenyon, def. Turchi, Pomona-Pitzer, 5-7, 6-0, 6-3; Noel, Skidmore, def. Lowe, DePauw, 2-6, 6-3, 6-3; Kinoshita, Rhodes, def. Brady, Trinity (Tex.), 7-6 (5), 1-6, 6-2.

Semifinals: Levine, Skidmore, def. Cuthbert, Kenyon, 6-3, 6-2; Kinoshita, Rhodes, def. Noel, Skidmore, 6-1, 6-3.

Final: Kinoshita, Rhodes, def. Levine, Skidmore, 6-4, 6-4.

Doubles

First round: Jamie Levine-Inke Noel, Skidmore, def. Jill Kossman-Maria Miller, Luther, 6-1, 6-2; Rosie Cella-Julie Kirkpatrick, Claremont-M-S, def. Katie Kirschbaum-Julie Sterner, Emory, 7-6 (7), 6-4; Erin Hockman-Ali St. Vincent, Kenyon, def. Katherine Crook-Mary Missbach, Sewanee, 6-2, 6-0; Stephanie Curwen-Jennifer Olmos, UC Santa Cruz, def. Heather Cohen-Emily Young, Vassar, 6-2, 6-1.

Anabel Flores-Paulina Sierra, Washington (Md.), def. Lisa Broughten-Erica Hanson, Gust. Adolphus, 6-2, 6-4; Laura Brady-Vanessa Hill, Trinity (Tex.), def. Kirsten Erickson-Leah Morris, Mary Washington, 6-3, 7-5; Audrey Coates-Becky Lucas, Hope, def. Natalia Garcia-Brook Hartzell, Wash. & Lee, 6-7 (5), 7-5, 6-1; Nao Kinoshita-Taylor Tarver, Rhodes, def. Christie Cooley-Claire Turchi, Pomona-Pitzer, 6-4, 1-6, 6-4.

Quarterfinals: Cella-Kirkpatrick, Claremont-M-S, def. Levine-Noel, Skidmore, 7-5, 6-7 (4), 6-3; Hockman-St. Vincent, Kenyon, def. Curwen-Olmos, UC Santa Cruz, 6-4, 6-1; Flores-Sierra, Washington (Md.), def. Brady-Hill, Trinity (Tex.), 7-5, 6-3; Kinoshita-Tarver, Rhodes, def. Coates-Lucas, Hope, 6-2, 6-1.

Semifinals: Hockman-St. Vincent, Kenyon, def. Cella-Kirkpatrick, Claremont-M-S, 6-3, 6-0; Kinoshita-Tarver, Rhodes, def. Flores-Sierra, Washington (Md.), 2-6, 6-2, 7-6 (5).

Final: Kinoshita-Tarver, Rhodes, def. Hockman-St. Vincent, Kenyon, 6-4, 6-3.