SAINT PETER, Minn. – Kaya De Bruijn once again clinched the match for No. 21 women's tennis over Carleton, this time a narrow 4-3 decision, winning sets two and three at No. 2 singles to earn the Gusties their ninth MIAC playoff title and a bid to the national tournament, set to begin next weekend.
The Gusties (26-7, 10-0 MIAC) won the doubles point thanks to victories at Nos. 2 and 3, and claimed two of their three singles wins in three sets (Nos. 2 and 4). Just two singles matches were decided by two sets.
Molly Austin (Jr., Arden Hills, Minn.) and
Lanie Davis (Fy., St. Louis, Mo.) cruised to the first win of the day, claiming a 6-1 win at No. 2 doubles.
Allison Szalay (Jr., Des Moines, Iowa) and
Ella De Young (So., Iowa City, Iowa) clinched the point with a 6-3 victory at No. 3.
Karina Elvestrom (Fy., Minnetonka, Minn.) and De Bruijn (Jr., Maasland, Netherlands) trailed the No. 1 duo from Carleton 4-3 when doubles play was halted.
Austin and Carleton's No. 6 Piper Brown were the only two to earn their singles win in two sets on Saturday. Austin collected a dominant 6-2, 6-1 win at No. 3, while Brown defeated
Brooke Haddorff (Sr., Burnsville, Minn.) 7-5, 6-0 at the six spot.
Elvestrom, Davis, and
Noor Omar (Fy., Fridley, Minn.) each won their first singles set, but fell in the second to raise the intensity of the match. First-year Elvestrom claimed a 6-1 win over Carleton's Amelia Asfaw, ranked No. 16 in the region, in set one, but dropped the second 6-3. Davis won 6-4 at No. 4 to open her singles play, falling by an identical score in set two. At No. 5, Omar won 6-2 in set one but fell 2-6 in set two to set the stage for another three-set match.
De Bruijn was the only Gustie to overcome a deficit, dropping her first singles 6-4 before returning the favor 6-3. Carleton won two of four set threes, as Elvestrom fell 6-2 and Omar 6-4. Davis tied the score 3-3 for the Gusties to set the stage for De Bruijn's clinching point.
The junior, who helped the team earn the regular season title with a win at No. 2 against Carleton (15-4, 9-1 MIAC) in the superbreaker on April 19, went up 5-2 in the third set before clinching the title for her team on home court.
"It was an amazing day of tennis, both teams fought so hard," said head coach
Jon Carlson '88 following his 59th total MIAC title. "The women really stepped up today. It was a whole team effort. I'm so excited for them – they've worked so hard this year and to have it come to fruition in the playoff championship, it's a pretty special feeling, and extremely well-earned.
"Carleton put up a huge fight today, and they're a really incredible team as well, but it felt great to come out on top, and I'm looking forward to the season continuing in the national tournament."
The championship is the MIAC-leading ninth for the Gusties and first since 2018. The team will advance to the NCAA tournament, set to begin next weekend, with their opponent and playing field decided Monday, May 5, at 11 a.m. CST on ncaa.com.
