THe Hillsdale College women's tennis team took the fight to top-seeded Findlay in Friday's G-MAC Tournament semifinal match, nearly pulling off a stunning upset victory that would have gotten the Chargers to a fourth-straight finals appearance.
But Hillsdale came up just short despite a valiant effort, falling by a narrow margin to the Oilers in a 4-3 loss.
The Chargers fell behind early after Findlay took the doubles point with wins at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles, giving the Oilers a 1-0 edge heading into singles play.
That meant Hillsdale had to take four of the six singles matches, and the Chargers were very nearly up to the task. Fresh off earning All-G-MAC honors, sophomore Melanie Zampardo played one of the best matches of her career at Hillsdale to roll to a 6-1, 6-1 win over Findlay's Samantha Sweet at No. 3 singles to get the Chargers on the board.
Needing three victories, Hillsdale pushed three of the remaining five matches to the third set. At No. 4 singles, junior Canela Luna came back strong after dropping the second set to pull off a 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 victory over Zuzanna Krygier of Findlay. Then, in her final match as a Charger, senior Sophia Spinazze went out with a stirring victory over the Oilers' Emily Hadler at No. 5 singles, rallying from a 4-6 loss in the first set and getting stronger throughout the match to take a 4-6, 6-4, 6-0 victory.
But the Chargers couldn't find an elusive fourth singles victory in the final three flights. Findlay won in straight sets at No. 2 and No. 6 singles, and a tight match between two players who had each won G-MAC Player of the Year awards in Hillsdale's Sarah Hackman and Findlay's Laiying Alvarado went down to the final points, but ultimately the Oilers were able to prevail in a 6-0, 5-7, 3-6 victory that clinched the match.
The defeat ends Hillsdale's season with an 8-10 record overall, and a 4-3 mark in G-MAC play. While the Chargers fell short of their ultimate goal of a fourth-straight G-MAC Tournament title, the future remains bright for Hillsdale, which is set to return five of its six lineup players from today's tournament match in the 2022-23 season, including Hackman, the 2021-22 G-MAC Player of the Year, and Zampardo, a second-team All-G-MAC honoree. The Chargers also add Sarah's younger sister, Megan, as a freshman next season and will hope to continue to improve on the foundation built this season and return stronger in the fall ready to get back to the top of the conference.
Photo Courtesy of Kentucky Wesleyan Athletics