Lopers Vs. Cougars Monday Morning; Three Pick Up Region Honors

5/15/2024 8:32:00 PM

Kearney, Neb. – The 15th-ranked Nebraska-Kearney women's tennis team is the eighth-seed in the 2024 NCAA Sweet 16 and will face 23rd-ranked Azusa Pacific (Calif.) Monday morning in Altamonte Springs, Fla.

The Lopers (20-5) and the ninth-seeded Cougars (21-2) will square off at 8 a.m. Central from Sanlando Park. Live results will be available and possibly live video (likely ONLY for the semifinals and finals). The UNK-APU winner advances to the national quarterfinals on Tuesday (2 p.m. Central) to face either six-time defending national champion Barry (Fla.) or 16th-seed St. Thomas Aquinas (N.Y.). 2024 Sports Festival

A committee seeded the field of 16 using criteria from the regular season and last week's NCAA regionals. UNK is 9-4 vs. the Top 40 this year including a 2-2 mark against the Sweet 16. However, one of their key wins came over 6th-ranked Flagler (Fla.) and the Saints were upset in their regional final.

Azusa's only setbacks were against 30th-ranked Point Loma (Calif.), 4-3, and 28th-ranked Academy of Art (Calif.), 4-0. Art is in the other West Region team to make the Sweet 16. The APU Cougars are led by 8th-ranked Madison Kane and 48th-ranked Cristina Miruna Tudor with the pair being Division II's top -ranked doubles team (17-2 in duals).

Last year in the Sweet 16, Azusa was the fifth-seed and lost to 12th-seed Washburn, 4-3. The 'Bods went on to lose to Flagler in the national quarterfinals.

UNK is 0-3 in three previous Sweet 16 appearances, falling to Barry (2012), BYU-Hawaii (2010) and Concordia, N.Y. (2009). The Lopers have faced Barry each of the last two February's, falling 5-1 (2024) and 4-0 (2023).

Also on Tuesday, the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) released its All-Region Awards. UNK picked off three on the women's side in the Central; Coach of the Year (Scott Shafer), Assistant Coach of the Year (Caleb Diller) and the Arthur Ashe Sportsmanship & Leadership award (Melisa Becerra).

2024 Regional Awards

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