CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi women's tennis team continued its historical reign through the Southland Conference, securing the 2024 SLC Regular Season Title outright after a 7-0 victory over Lamar on its final home match of the year Monday.
The Islanders (19-2, 6-0 SLC) are now sole owners of the regular season championship after McNeese suffered a loss to UIW today. It also secures them the No. 1 seed for the SLC Championships, set for April 18-21 in San Antonio, where they will look to defend that title as well after winning the last three straight.
The senior class of
Emma Aucagne,
Naomi Moi McKenzie,
Valeria Cherfus,
Kateryna Rublevska, and
Victoire Delattre were honored in a Senior Day recognition between doubles and singles, before capping the day with the program's 34
th SLC championship. It is the women's 12
th overall championship, continuing their stance as one of the most winning programs in the history of the Southland Conference for any sport.
Combined, the senior class has won five championships for the Islanders, with Aucagne, Rublevska, and Delattre getting the opportunity to celebrate each one.
It marks the women's sixth regular season crown as they now become the league's most winning team on the women's side with the most regular season titles, beating out Northwestern State as the two were tied at five. The Islanders also hold the all-time Southland Conference records for NCAA Championship Appearances (6) and Southland Tournament Championships (6) despite only being a conference member since 2003.
The Islanders also complete another undefeated home season, not dropping a match on their home court since 2021. They have won 45 straight home matches in addition to 22 consecutive wins over Southland opponents including in the conference tournament.
It comes after the Islanders did quick work of doubles play, with four seniors getting it done on courts one and three both in 6-1 decisions. Freshman
Ana Veroux and sophomore
Palina Saulevich then completed the doubles sweep, notching the 6-2 win at court two.
Cherfus and McKenzie quickly made it a 3-0 match after finishing back-to-back of each other. Cherfus opened singles with a 6-0, 6-1 win at court four, two points before McKenzie finalized a 6-1, 6-3 win at No. 2.
Rublevska had the honor of clinching the match and the regular season title after posting another pair of 6-1 sets at court five. Aucagne then rounded out play for the seniors with a 6-2, 6-0 win at No. 1 singles.
At court six, Saulevich notched the 6-1, 6-3 victory to take a 6-0 lead in the match. With the championship already secured, eyes came down to court three where Veroux battled back from being down 4-0 in the second set to win the next six straight games to secure to sweep and begin the celebrations.
The Islanders will still look to close out the regular season on Saturday at Northwestern State after the match was rescheduled from February due to weather. A&M-Corpus Christi will be going for its second straight undefeated conference record after also posting the 7-0 SLC record last year and third ever.
Match Results – A&M-Corpus Christi 7, Lamar 0
Doubles competition
1.
Emma Aucagne/
Naomi Moi McKenzie (AMCC-W) def. Megan Do/Marika Mueller (LU-W) 6-1
2.
Ana Veroux/
Palina Saulevich (AMCC-W) def. Elena Rubio/Jayci Wong (LU-W) 6-2
3.
Kateryna Rublevska/
Valeria Cherfus (AMCC-W) def. Martina Alcaino/Nouray Metwally (LU-W) 6-1
Singles competition
1.
Emma Aucagne (AMCC-W) def. Marika Mueller (LU-W) 6-2, 6-0
2.
Naomi Moi McKenzie (AMCC-W) def. Megan Do (LU-W) 6-1, 6-3
3.
Ana Veroux (AMCC-W) def. Elena Rubio (LU-W) 6-1, 6-4
4.
Valeria Cherfus (AMCC-W) def. Nouray Metwally (LU-W) 6-0, 6-1
5.
Kateryna Rublevska (AMCC-W) def. Martina Alcaino (LU-W) 6-1, 6-1
6.
Palina Saulevich (AMCC-W) def. Saloni Tamang (LU-W) 6-1, 6-3
A&M-Corpus Christi Tennis
- 16 NCAA Tournaments
- 34 SLC Championships
- 4 Top-40 National Rankings
- 3.0 GPA 41 Straight Semesters
- Islanders have received a No. 3 seed at the NCAA Tournament three times
- Women's tennis has cracked the ITA top-75 national rankings three times
- Men's tennis has cracked the ITA national rankings 10 consecutive years
- Ranked nationally in NCAA DI as high as No. 35 for the men and No. 60 for the women
Stay Social
For more information on Islanders Tennis, follow the team on Twitter (
@IslandersTennis), Instagram (
@IslandersTennis) and like their Facebook page (
Islanders Tennis).
#ShakasUp
