Ravens Win Second NE10 Title in Six Months.
RINDGE, N.H. – For the second straight year, the No. 3-seeded Franklin Pierce women's tennis team claimed the Northeast-10 title after prevailing, 4-1, over No. 4-seeded Adelphi at the Tennis Courts on Sunday afternoon. Graduate student Estela Carra clinched the deciding point for the Ravens, as she finished 6-3, 6-2 at No. 4 singles, before her teammates piled on top of her on the court.
The Ravens improve to 11-2 overall on the season and secure the NE10's automatic berth to the NCAA Championship in the spring. With the loss, Adelphi falls to 10-4 on the year and will rely on an at-large bid to qualify for NCAAs.
In doubles competition, Adelphi grabbed the point to take the early lead. Graduate student duo Anais Geslin and Carra started the Ravens off strong with a quick 6-1 win over Louisa Junghanns and Amanda Franstedt of Adelphi at court No. 2, before Adelphi's pair of Julie Kielan and Carolina Chaves defeated sophomores Maria Penalver Aguilo and Zoe Asterio Correa, 6-3 at No. 3.
With the teams tied at one apiece, the doubles point came down to the marathon match on court No. 1 between graduate student Himani Mor and junior Liria Loria, and Adelphi's Caterina Federici and Barbie Quagliardi. Ultimately, the point went to the Panthers, as Federici and Quagliardi won 7-6(2).
Down 1-0, Franklin Pierce got to work in singles play. Loria finished first at No. 3, racing to a 6-0, 6-2 win over Federici of Adelphi, to make the match a 1-1 draw. On No. 2 singles, Mor downed Quagliardi 6-3, 6-1, to give the Ravens a slight 2-1 advantage, while Penalver Aguilo picked up her point after defeating Junghanns 6-4, 6-3 at court No. 1 to extend the Ravens' lead to 3-1. Carra led 5-2 in the second set, as her teammates watched anxiously on the side, before clinching the match for the Ravens, winning 6-3, 6-2 over Franstedt of Adelphi.
At No. 5 singles, Geslin had a 3-1 lead in the first over her Adelphi opponent Kielan, before the match ended abruptly, while Asterio Correa and her opponent Chaves of Adelphi were getting ready to start their match at No. 6.
At the conclusion of play, Carra, Loria and Penalver Aguilo were all named to the NE10 All-Championship Team. Carra also took home Most Outstanding Player honors for the 2021 NE10 Women's Tennis Championship.
Adelphi's Quagliardi was named the Elite 24 Award winner, after earning a 3.9877 GPA as a finace major. The Elite 24 honors the student-athlete with the highest cumulative GPA at the finals site of each NE10 Championship.
-Recap provided by Franklin Pierce athletic communications-
ALL-CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM
Estela Carra, Franklin Pierce*
Liria Loria, Franklin Pierce
Maria Penalver Aguilo, Franklin Pierce
Louisa Junghanns, Adelphi
Barbie Qualiardi, Adelphi
Birdem Oz, Le Moyne
Natalie Kallmunzerova, SNHU
*Most Outstanding Player
ELITE 24 AWARD
Barbie Quagliardi, Adelphi
NE10 Women's Tennis Championship
- Le Moyne (10-0)
- Southern New Hampshire (9-1)
- Franklin Pierce (8-2)
- Adelphi (7-3)
- Stonehill (6-4)
- New Haven (5-5)
Wednesday, October 20th
First Round
Match #1: #3 Franklin Pierce 4, #6 New Haven 0
Match #2: #4 Adelphi 4, #5 Stonehill 2
Friday, October 22nd
Semifinals
Match #3: #3 Franklin Pierce 4, #2 SNHU 0
Match #4: #4 Adelphi 4, #1 Le Moyne 0
Sunday, October 24th
Championship (to be held at highest remaining seed)
Game 5: #3 Franklin Pierce 4, #4 Adelphi 1
2021 NE10 Women's Tennis Championship (Fall) (PC: Brian Foley)
ABOUT THE NE10
The NE10 is an association of 14 diverse institutions serving student-athletes across 24 NCAA Division II sports. Together we build brilliant futures by embracing the journey of every student-athlete.
Each year, 4,500 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 24 sports, making the NE10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the NE10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.
