The Hillsdale College women's tennis team fought hard on Senior Day, putting a scare into the 24th-ranked team in Division II, but couldn't pull the upset in the end in a 6-1 defeat against Tiffin on Saturday.
Hillsdale hung tough with the Dragons, who entered the match 23-1 overall and 8-0 in G-MAC play, pushing five sets to tiebreaks. It just wasn't quite enough to seal the deal, as the Dragons won four of those five tiebreaks on their way to taking the match.
The Chargers had an early opportunity to build momentum, getting an impressive 7-5 win at No. 3 doubles from senior Helana Formentin and junior Libby McGivern. Both of the other two doubles flights went to tiebreaks, giving Hillsdale a chance to steal the doubles point and an early advantage, but it wasn't meant to be, as Tiffin took the tiebreak at No. 1 doubles by a narrow 7-5 margin and won the tiebreak at No. 2 doubles 7-2 as well.
In singles play, freshman Ane Dannhauser pulled off a huge win at No. 1 singles for the Chargers over Tiffin's Maeva Maxch, winning a marathon third-set tiebreak 9-7 in a 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (7) win that got the Chargers their lone point.
Hillsdale also got tough fights from senior Melanie Zampardo, who forced a tiebreak in the first set at No. 2 singles, and by senior Julia Wagner, who also forced a tiebreak at No. 6 singles against the Dragons. In the end, however, Tiffin took five of six singles flights to clinch the match.
The Chargers are now 7-12 overall and 4-3 in G-MAC play, with two huge matches for seeding purposes in the upcoming G-MAC Tournament coming up next week. The Chargers travel to Ursuline on Saturday, before finishing the regular season with a tough Walsh squad on Sunday. A win in either match should lock up the Chargers' berth in the G-MAC Tournament the following weekend.
Hillsdale also honored Zampardo, Wagner and Formentin, their three graduating seniors, who played their final home match on Saturday. All three players have been important for the Chargers in 2024, and Wagner and Formentin were both a part of Hillsdale's most recent G-MAC Championship in 2021.