Surprise, Arizona — Mississippi College women’s tennis earned a spot in the NCAA South Regional final after a 4-1 victory over Columbus State on Wednesday at the Surprise Tennis & Racquet Club.
The No. 7 seed Lady Choctaws (27-1) lost the doubles point to No. 8 seed Columbus State (21-5) but responded strongly in singles play. Mississippi College won four straight singles matches to secure the victory.
Senior Emily Buchanan opened singles with a straight-set win over nationally-ranked Nikoline Gullacksen, 7-6, 7-5, after a tight tiebreak in the first set. Rocio Martinez added a win at No. 2 singles, 6-3, 6-3, while Anna Hudson cruised at No. 4, 6-4, 6-1. Rune Van Wyk clinched the match at No. 5 singles with a 6-3, 6-1 victory.
Columbus State took the doubles point with wins at No. 1 and No. 2 doubles. Mississippi College’s only doubles win came from Van Wyk and Katharina Weber at No. 3 doubles, 6-2. Two singles matches were unfinished when the Lady Choctaws secured their fourth point.
With the win, Mississippi College advances to face No. 4 seed Catawba College in the next round of the NCAA Division II Women’s Tennis Championship on Friday at 11 a.m. CST (9 a.m. MST) in Surprise.
