REDLANDS, Calif. - For the twelfth straight year (No Tournament in 2020 or 2021 due to COVID-19) the University of Redlands Women's Tennis team has qualified for the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Tournament. They are now competing in the semifinals after they finished among the top four teams in the conference standings. The Maroon and Grey earned the No. 3 seed and will travel to take on the No. 2 seed Pomona-Pitzer this Friday, Apr. 28 at 2:00 p.m.
This year's team finished third in the conference standings after posting a 4-3 SCIAC mark, which included wins over Whittier College, Chapman University, California Lutheran University and Occidental College.
The last time the Bulldogs and Sagehens matched up was back on April 8 where Redlands fell 7-2. In that match three singles matches went the distance with Olivia Rockwood (Park City, UT) and Kiana Brady (Hermosa Beach, CA) picking up the two points at No. 2 and No. 3. Rockwood beat Georgia Ryan 6-4, 4-6, 10-4 and Brady edged Amelia Poor 3-6, 7-5, 14-12.
The winner of the semifinal matchup will face the winner of No. 1 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and No. 4 Chapman University for the SCIAC title. The final will be held Saturday, Apr. 29 with the time to be announced later.
University of Redlands
The Bulldogs come into the SCIAC Tournament with a 9-5, 4-3 SCIAC record and boast a No. 30 national ranking and a No. 8 ranking in the West Region. The last time the U of R advanced to the SCIAC Final was back in 2010, under former Head Coach Geoff Roche. That year the team finished as runners-up, while qualifying for the NCAA Division III National Championships. Redlands looks to go back-to-back with qualifying for the NCAA Division III National Championships. In 2022 the Bulldogs picked up an upset over then No. 14 Trinity (TX), but would fall to Pomona-Pitzer in the Round of 16.
Kendall Bolock (Yucaipa, CA) leads the Maroon and Grey playing No. 1 and is the No. 14 ranked player in the West Region with an 8-4 record in singles, three of which came within conference. She also is paired up with O. Rockwood in doubles and the duo are ranked No. 4 in the West Region with a 10-4 record on the season, including a 5-2 mark in SCIAC. They are also riding a three match winning streak and have gone 7-3 across their last ten.
Brady is another player to watch, recently playing at No. 2 singles. She is 9-3 on the year, 5-1 in SCIAC, with an unblemished record in the second slot going 3-0. Brady has won five in a row and is 7-2 over her last ten matches. She also pairs up with Christine O'Brien (Leawood, KS) at No. 2 doubles ranking No. 15 in the West Region and the two have put together a strong season going 9-5, 4-3 in SCIAC. They have won two in a row and have gone 6-4 over their last ten matches.
L. Rockwood has moved between No. 2 and No. 3 singles on the season, but has a 9-4 record, which includes a perfect 3-0 mark at the third line. She is on a four-match winning streak and is 7-2 over her last ten matches. Other players to watch include first-year Mia Goldstein (Ann Arbor, MI) who is 7-6 on the season, which includes a 3-0 mark at No. 5. She is riding a three-match winning streak. She joins Madison Sherwood (Las Vegas, NV) in doubles with a 5-4 mark at No. 3. They have won two in a row and are 2-3 in SCIAC. Sherwood has been a mainstay at No. 6 for the Bulldogs and she has been steady collecting an 8-5 record. She is 6-3 over her last ten and has won three in a row. She is also 4-3 in SCIAC.
Pomona-Pitzer
The Sagehens have been tough this season coming into the SCIAC Tournament with a 12-7, 6-1 SCIAC record. They are currently ranked No. 3 in Division III and No. 2 in the West Region. They boast two singles players and two doubles teams in the West Region Rankings. Angie Zhou leads Pomona-Pitzer as the top-ranked player in the West Region. She is joined by Nina Ye who is at No. 16. Then in doubles Lauren Rha and N. Ye come together as the No. 2 ranked team in the West Region, while Marissa Markey and A. Zhou are ranked No. 7.
For those unable to cheer on the Bulldogs in person this Friday, the match will be streamed live via Track.Tennis.