NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The No. 30-ranked Carleton College women's tennis team earned a spot in the MIAC Playoffs Championship after defeating No. 41 Bethel University, 4-1, in a semifinal match at the Pat Lamb Tennis Courts.
Carleton (15-3) will head to No. 21 Gustavus Adolphus College (25-7), the top seed in the conference tournament, for the finals of the MIAC Women's Tennis Playoffs. This will be the fourth consecutive year and the 10th time since 2007 that the Knights and Gusties will clash in the championship match.
Carleton improved to 3-0 all time against Bethel (14-5) in the postseason, having previously defeated the Royals in the 2017 semifinals and the 2019 finals.
The Knights, the second seed in this year's tournament, prevailed in two of the three doubles matches to pick up the day's first team point.
Amelia Asfaw and
Mariam Nechiporuk recorded their 13th triumph of the season as they defeated Lauryn Douglas and Michaella Sullivan 6-4 at No. 1 doubles.
Amanda Black and
Kat Smiricinschi added a 6-3 win at No. 3 doubles over Payton Douglas and Courtney Nuest. Third-seeded Bethel posted a 6-3 win at No. 2 doubles.
Four of the six singles matches required a third set and another ended with a second-set tiebreaker.
Ryann Witter gave Carleton a 2-0 lead overall with her 6-1, 7-6 (7-3) victory at No. 5 singles, her 13th win of the year. Sullivan got Bethel its team point with a 7-5, 6-1 victory over Nechiporuk at the second slot.
Kiley Pickens inched the Knights closer to victory with her 6-2, 4-6, 7-5 win over Baber at No. 4 singles. It was Pickens' team-high 16th win of the year and improved her career singles ledger to 32-1.
Asfaw's ninth consecutive victory brought the match to decision as she rallied from a set down for a 1-6, 6-2, 6-3 triumph over Lauryn Douglas at No. 1 singles.
Carleton also had the advantage in the third set of both unfinished matches.
Miriam Shteyman led 7-5, 2-6, 5-2 at No. 3 singles when the team result was determined.
Piper Brown owned a 4-6, 7-5, 1-0 lead over Nuest at No. 6 singles.
Up Next for the Knights
Carleton heads to St. Peter, Minn., for the finals on Saturday, May 3. First serve is slated for 3:30 p.m. These two programs have won 15 of 17 conference tournaments since moving to the current format in 2007, and they have accounted for 27 of 34 berths in the championships over that time.
Carleton has won seven playoff titles in program history, including each of the last three, while Gustavus has won eight postseason titles, with the most recent coming in 2018.
