ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Florida -- Midwestern State's bid to extend an historic run ended with a 4-1 loss to No. 2-ranked Nova Southeastern (Fla.) in the semifinal round of the NCAA Division II Championships Saturday morning at the Sanlando Park Tennis Center.
The Sharks (25-3) face top-ranked Barry (Fla.) with a national championship on the line Sunday morning at 8 a.m. (Central). The Buccaneers (25-1) defeated Flagler (Fla.) in the other semifinal.
The Mustangs finished their second consecutive season as one of the last four teams standing in NCAA Division II. MSU amassed a 23-4 mark for the second most wins in program history and the most since the 2000 team won 24 times, marking the first time the program made an appearance at the national championship site with a showing in the Round of 16.
Senior
Hannah Yip provided the highlight for the Mustangs, taking down No. 18-ranked Ita Habekovic - 7-5, 6-3 - at No. 2 singles.
But Nova Southeastern jumped out to a 1-0 lead following doubles play with a pair of 6-1 wins at the Nos. 1 and 2 positions.
No. 3-ranked Kristyna Hranacova extended the Sharks' advantage with a 6-4, 6-1 win over MSU's
Jessica Binzari at No. 1 singles just before Yip put the Mustangs on the board.
Sofia Shing delivered Nova Southeastern's third point with a 6-3, 6-3 win over
Anda Ghinga at the No. 3 position, then Julia Moraes clinched the match with a 6-1, 3-6, 6-1 win over
Sydney Williams at No. 6.
MSU sophomore
Sofia Giraldo split her first two sets with Isabella Ciancaglini before the match with abandoned at No. 4, while
Camila Garcia held a 7-6 (5), 3-1 edge over Noemie Dadoun.
Midwestern State's senior core of Binzari, Ghinga, Williams, Yip, and
Kanaha Furutani closed out an incredible run which included 81 wins, two conference titles, four NCAA Division II tournament appearances, and the program's first two advancement to the national semifinals.
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-- MSUMustangs.com --