SURPRISE, Ariz. - The IUP women's tennis program saw its 2020-21 season come to an end Wednesday as the sixth-seeded Crimson Hawks lost to third-seeded Central Oklahoma 4-0 in the quarterfinals of the 2021 NCAA Division II Championships at the Surprise Tennis and Racquet Club.
It was the Crimson Hawks' toughest competition of the season, as Central Oklahoma came to Arizona ranked third in the ITA Division II national poll, and with three top-35 singles players and two top-15 doubles pairings.
The Bronchos earned the doubles point with bookend wins at the first and third spots. At No. 3,
Laura Dunarova and
Joanna Stralka dropped a 6-1 decision before
Idoia Huerta and
Lydia Vlachou lost to Adel-Byanu Abidullina and Isabella Dunlap by a score of 6-4 at No. 1. Abidullina and Dunlap came in as the No. 2-ranked doubles team in Division II.
In a match that went unfinished,
Karolin Kirchtag and
Katy Graydon trailed Mae Canete and Paola Landin 5-4 at No. 2. Canete and Landin are ranked 13th in Division II.
In singles play, Central Oklahoma earned wins at the Nos. 2, 3 and 6 spots. Huerta fell to No. 7-ranked Canete 6-0, 6-2 at two, with Stralka losing to No. 33-ranked Dunlap 6-4, 6-2 at three, and Dunarova losing to Nikki Boyar 6-4, 6-2 at six.
Left unfinished, Kirchtag trailed No. 5-ranked Abidullina 7-5, 5-4 at the top spot, Graydon was deadlocked with Landin 6-4, 4-5 at four, and Vlachou led Blythe Buntrock 4-6, 6-2, 1-0 at five.
Central Oklahoma advances to Thursday's semifinals to face No. 2 seed Barry.
The Crimson Hawks were making the program's 13th trip to the NCAA tournament, including its first-ever appearance in the national quarterfinals. IUP is now 20-13 all-time in NCAA postseason play.
IUP wraps up its season with a 15-4 overall record. The Crimson Hawks won the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division regular season and league tournament championships before winning the program's third Atlantic Region title to advance to the NCAA quarterfinals. IUP overcame a 1-2 start and early-season COVID protocol issues to post win streaks of six and eight matches to get to Arizona.
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