Apr 23, 2006
EASTON, Mass.-- Second-seeded Bryant captured its third straight Northeast-10 Conference Women's Tennis Championship on Sunday afternoon, as the Bulldogs received a straight set win at number six singles from sophomore Lauren Mullen (Braintree, Mass.) to post a 5-4 victory over top-seeded Stonehill in a marathon match at the Ames Sports Complex.
The two teams battled for nearly 4 ? hours before Bryant, now 15-2 overall on the season, came away with the tournament title, avenging a 5-4 regular season setback to the Skyhawks that ended the Bulldogs' 35-match Northeast-10 winning streak. The visitors took a 2-1 lead after doubles play, as juniors Sacha Solomon (Bourne, Mass.) and Annette Jervasi (Colchester, Conn.) took an 8-4 win at the number one spot while Mullen and sophomore Michelle Burke (Barrington, R.I.) claimed an 8-2 triumph at the number three position. Stonehill, which saw its school-record 15-match winning streak come to an end in falling to 17-2 overall, took the point at number two doubles when seniors Ashley Todd (Weymouth, Mass.) and Anna Walsh (Dennis, Mass.) won a 9-8 decision, including 7-5 in the tie-breaker.
Singles wins by Solomon at the number one spot and Jervasi at number three that sandwiched Todd's straight-set win at the number two position gave Bryant a 4-2 lead, but Stonehill used three-set wins by Walsh at number four and sophomore Daniella Granato (Concord, Mass.) at number five to pull even at 4-4, setting up Mullen's heroics at number six for the Bulldogs.
The two teams met for the league title for the second straight season, and both schools combined to place seven individuals on the first-team all-conference singles squad, with Solomon, Spence and Jervasi representing Bryant and Walsh, Granato and sophomore Allison Bleakney (Lewiston, Maine) representing Stonehill. Burke and senior Alanna Santanello (North Providence, R.I.) earned second team all-league honors in singles play for the Bulldogs, as did Todd for the Skyhawks, while Mullen was a third-team singles all-conference honoree as well.
Arcabascio and Granato earned first-team all-league doubles accolades for Stonehill, while Spence and Santanello along with Mullen and Burke did likewise for Bryant. Solomon and Jervasi were second team doubles honorees, while the Skyhawk tandems of Todd/Walsh and Clark/Bleakney were third team doubles selections.
Solomon was named as the Northeast-10 Player of the Year for the third straight season, while Spence was the recipient of the league's F. Paul Bogan Memorial Sportsmanship Award. Stonehill Head Coach Pam Arpe was tabbed as the 2006 Northeast-10 Coach of the Year after guiding the Skyhawks to their first outright conference regular season title in 14 years and their fourth overall.
Bryant earned the Northeast-10's automatic berth into the NCAA Division II Championships, while Stonehill is expected to earn an at-large berth in the East Regionals when the 64-team national field is announced on Wednesday.
