Hillsdale Faces Missouri-St. Louis in NCAA Championship Midwest Regional

4.26.18

NCAA DII Women's Tennis Championship Bracket (PDF)


INDIANAPOLIS
- Great Midwest Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament champion Hillsdale qualified for the NCAA DII Women’s Tennis Championship Midwest Regional that will be played in Allendale, Mich.
 
Grand Valley State will serve as host for the second pod of regional, which includes the No. 2 Lakers (GLIAC), No. 3 Missouri-St. Louis (GLVC), No. 6 Hillsdale (G-MAC) and No. 7 Wayne State (GLIAC).
 
Hillsdale’s opening round draw on Saturday, April 28, is against No. 3 Missouri-St. Louis from the Great Lakes Valley Conference at 10 a.m. ET. The Chargers are entering the national tournament with a 14-4 overall record.
 
Grand Valley State and Wayne State will clash in the other opening-round contest while the winning teams from Midwest Regional #2 will play on Sunday morning at 11 a.m. ET.

The winner of that match will then head to Surprise, Ariz., for the NCAA Sweet 16 next weekend.

In the other half of the Midwest Region bracket, No. 1 seed Drury will face the winner of the UIndy-Bellarmine regional quarterfinal match. 

Hillsdale is part of the field of 48 teams in the national tourney and is just the second program in Great Midwest history to advance to the NCAA Women’s Tennis Midwest Regional after Davis & Elkins earned a trip back in 2016.
 
The Chargers are coming off their Great Midwest Championship title run that included two wins in two days in Owensboro, Ky.
 
Hillsdale locked in the regular-season title with an undefeated run against league competition and the Chargers held steady in the No. 6 slot in the regional rankings that were released leading up to the NCAA’s Selection Show.
 
Hillsdale cleaned up with a sweep of the major all-conference individual awards that included Great Midwest Player of the Year Halle Hyman, Great Midwest Freshman of the Year Hannah Cimpeanu and Great Midwest Coach of the Year Nikki Walbright.
 
HC has not lost since March 6 and the program is enjoying a 12-match win streak that includes a 5-4 win over NCAA qualifier Wayne State. The Chargers have gone a combined 69-32 in singles while winning over 75 percent of their doubles matchups (41-13).
 
Hillsdale was represented on the Great Midwest All-Conference First Team with Katie Bell, Hyman, Cimpeanu and Madeline Bissett. Sophomore Kamryn Matthews was a second-team all-conference selection.
 
If the regional quarterfinal match has to be played indoors, it will be played in the Dewitt Tennis Center. Should weather conditions permit the match to be played outdoors, it will be at Grandville Middle School.