Flushing, N.Y. - The St. Thomas Aquinas College Tennis team advanced to the East Coast Conference Tournament Final with a 4-0 shutout victory over the Daemen University in the semifinal round on Friday afternoon at the Queens College Tennis Center.
Top-seeded STAC improves to 9-0 on the year, while Daemen closes its 2022 fall campaign at 3-7.
STAC opened things up with a dominant performance in doubles play, taking two matchups to secure the team doubles point. The duo of Paula Palero and Eliza Mulder took a 6-0 victory at the No. 3 slot over Mackenzie Schayes and Ailish McDevitt, followed by the pair of Jemima Parkinson and Elita Silins winning 6-1 against Yinett Del Leon and Carly Armitage at the No. 2 position.
Once the Spartans secured the doubles point, there was no turning back. St. Thomas Aquinas jumped right into singles play, taking the first three matches from the Wildcats to secure the win and advance to Saturday's championship. Elita Silins started the victory spree in the No. 5 slot, taking a 6-0, 6-1 victory over Mackenzie Schayes. Amaia Balaguer Brau followed the trend by taking a 6-0, 6-0 triumph in the No. 4 slot against Carly Armitage to give the Spartans a commanding 3-0 lead and put Daemen on the ropes, facing elimination. Ayesha Burnett delivered the final knockout blow in the No. 6 position, cruising to a 6-1, 6-0 win over Ailish McDevitt to end the postseason contest.
STAC 4/DAEMEN 0 - OFFICIAL RESULTS
Order of Finish: 3, 2*
SINGLES
"We are happy with today's win as Daemen played very well", said Head Coach Dan Rockhill. "They are an up-and-coming team in the conference and I suspect they will be back in the ECC tournament often."
"Competing for championships never gets old and we are looking forward to the challenge tomorrow. We are fully aware of how good Queens is and I am not the least bit surprised to see them across the net in the final. They are tough to beat on their home indoor courts and our regular season match, in their bubble, was decided by just a few key points. We will need to win those similar key points to come home with the trophy tomorrow. "
"I really like this team and have every confidence that they will play relaxed and thoroughly enjoy the experience."