BEVERLY, Mass. — The top-seeded Endicott women's tennis team captured its fourth straight Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) title on Tuesday afternoon over No. 2 Nichols, 5-4, at the South Campus Courts.
With the match tied at 4-4, Ashley Keaveney (Exeter, N.H.) secured the championship for the Gulls at No. 4 singles behind a gritty 3-6, 6-0, 6-4 win.
Ripley Uyeda (Ranchos Palos Verdes, Calif.) forced the 4-4 tie moments before Keaveney's clutch victory with another strong comeback effort at the No. 3 spot, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.
Meanwhile, Shelby Henry (Lincoln, Neb.) earned the other pivotal singles victory for Endicott at No. 5 in convincing fashion, 6-2, 6-1.
The Gulls came out of doubles with a 2-1 advantage courtesy of Uyeda / Lejla Guster (Wethersfield, Conn.) at No. 1 (8-3), and a hard-fought 8-7 (7-2) comeback victory from Keaveney / Olivia Martinelli (Coral Springs, Fla.) at No. 2.
TOP QUOTE
"It was not pretty, but we got it done. We had to dig deep today. It's time to celebrate," said Endicott women's tennis head coach Anthony D'Angelo.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Endicott won its 10th CCC title in program history (2008, 2011-15, 2021 fall, 2021 spring, 2022, fall 2022).
- The Blue and Green capped off the fall with a 7-0 record at the South Campus Courts.
- The Gulls have never lost the CCC Championship when going undefeated in regular season play (6-0 in 2023, 7-0 in 2022-2023, 5-0 in 2020-21, 8-0 in 2014-15, and 2015-16).
- Endicott is 7-4 in the CCC Championship match against the Nichols.
WHAT'S NEXT
Endicott (10-3) has earned the league's automatic qualifier into the 2023-24 NCAA Division III Women's Tennis Championship Tournament this spring. Nichols sees its fall campaign come to a close at 9-3 overall.
For the latest on Endicott Athletics, follow the Gulls on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
(Photo Credit - David Le '10)
