FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
S-102-07-08
Thursday, April 17, 2008

Elizabethtown College Men's and Women's Tennis Teams to Compete in Commonwealth Playoffs

ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. --- The Elizabethtown College men's and women's tennis teams will participate in the Commonwealth Conference team tournament this weekend at the Hempfield Sports Complex in Landisville.

The Blue Jay women (12-3 overall, 4-0 Commonwealth) are the top seed and will play in the championship match on Sunday at 10:00 a.m. against the winner of Saturday's first-round match between third-seeded Messiah College and second-seeded Lebanon Valley College.

The Blue Jay men (7-5 overall, 3-1 Commonwealth) will face Lebanon Valley in a first-round match on Saturday at 12:30 p.m., with the winner to play Messiah on Sunday at 12:30 p.m. in the championship match.

The Commonwealth Conference men's and women's champions will each receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III tournament, which begins May 2.

Elizabethtown's women will look for its third Commonwealth Conference championship in the last four years, having won in both 2004 and 2005. The Blue Jays lost 5-4 to Moravian College in last year's finals, in the first year that the conference earned an automatic qualifier to the NCAA Division III playoffs.

Junior Alice Yu (Athens, GA/Clarke Central) leads the Blue Jays in victories with a 17-3 mark, including a 14-1 record in dual matches. She ranks fifth in program history with 52 career singles victories, and was the MAC individual champion at #3 singles in the fall.

Senior Emma Smith (Moorestown, NJ/Moorestown) is 12-8 overall at #2 singles, including a 10-5 record in dual matches, and sophomore Emily Swarr (Manheim, PA/Manheim Central) was the Commonwealth Conference Player of the Year after going 9-9 overall and 8-7 in dual matches at #1 singles.

Also reaching double figures in victories were sophomore Jessica Russell (Kennett Square, PA/Unionville) and first-year student Minke Albers (The Hague, The Netherlands), each finishing with an 11-4 overall record. First-year student Kelly Fisher (Harrisburg, PA/Bishop McDevitt) joined the team for the spring portion of the schedule and went 6-3 at #6 singles.

In doubles, Smith and Yu teamed to go 11-6 overall and 10-4 at #1 doubles, and Swarr and Russell finished with a 14-3 overall record and 12-2 at #2 doubles. Albers and Fisher rolled to a 9-1 mark at #3 doubles for the Blue Jays.

The Blue Jay men finished as runner-up to Messiah in the Commonwealth Conference finals last season, after claiming the team title in 2005.

Sophomore Brok Walker (Red Lion, PA/Red Lion) paces the Blue Jays with an 11-7 singles record, including an 8-4 mark at #1 singles. Junior Jeff Kirkhoff (Duncannon, PA/Susquenita) added five wins at #2 singles and senior Andrew Voshell (Chester Heights, PA/Garnet Valley) finished 9-7 overall and 8-4 in dual matches, primarily at #3 singles.

First-year student Bryan Metz (Hummelstown, PA/Lower Dauphin) chipped in with six victories while playing at #4 singles, and sophomore Brandon Stolar (Millville, NJ/Millville) posted an even 9-9 record as the team's #5 player. First-year student Stijn van Esveld (Bilthoven, The Netherlands) cracked the lineup late in the season and finished 4-2 at #6 singles.

All three Blue Jay doubles teams finished with winning records, as Kirkhoff and Voshell went 6-5 at #1 doubles, Metz and Walker finished 9-7 overall and 8-3 at #2 doubles, and senior Jim Dombach (Lancaster, PA/Manheim Township) teamed with sophomore Mike Steiner (Greensburg, PA/Greater Latrobe) to go 7-3 at #3 doubles.