NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – Following a pre-match ceremony honoring seniors
Mackenzie Blair (Thomaston, Conn.), Abbey Bryant (North Brookfield, Mass.) and
Danielle Dunn (Middleton, Mass.), the Merrimack College women's tennis team put an exclamation point on Senior Day with a 6-3 victory over Saint Anselm to finish the regular season with a 7-5 Northeast-10 Conference record. The Navy and Gold will now await their postseason fate, needing Bentley to lose two of its last three matches to clinch a playoff berth in the NE10 Championship.
The Basics
Score: Merrimack 6, Saint Anselm 3
Records: Merrimack (7-5, 7-5 NE10) | Saint Anselm (5-7, 4-7 NE10)
Location: North Andover, Mass. | North Andover High School
NE10 Postseason Outlook
The top-six programs qualify for the Northeast-10 Championship, with the top-two seeds earning byes to the semifinals while the No. 3-4 seeded hosts the No. 5-6 seeds in quarterfinal action. The NE10 Championship begins on Wednesday, Oct. 25. In order to finish sixth and clinch a playoff berth, Bentley must lose two of its final three matches.
1) Stonehill (9-0, 8-0)
2) Adelphi (10-1, 9-1)
H2H over Assumption
3) Assumption (11-1, 9-1)
4) Le Moyne (10-2, 8-2)
5) SNHU (7-3, 6-3)
6) Bentley (8-3, 5-3)
7) Merrimack (7-5, 7-5)
8) Saint Anselm (5-7, 4-7)
9) New Haven (5-8, 4-7)
10) Saint Michael's (4-9, 3-8)
12) Franklin Pierce (1-12, 1-9)
13) AIC (1-11, 1-9)
13) Saint Rose (0-10, 0-11)
Results
Doubles
1. Jess Perkins/Kaitlin Hughes (STA) def.
Mana Seifaei/
Danielle Dunn (MERW) 8-2
2.
Mia Briggs/
Cassie Restrepo (MERW) def. Tess Malerbi/Meghan Golden (STA) 8-0
3.
Mackenzie Blair/
Lauren Persson (MERW) def. Lexi Stathis/Maikah Bulpitt (STA) 8-0
Singles
Rapid Recap (Doubles)
- Merrimack roared out to a 2-0 advantage to clinch a lead going into singles. The duo of sophomore Mia Briggs (York, Maine) and freshman Cassie Restrepo (Miami, Fla.) powered through the second flight to pick up their fifth win as a duo, 8-0
- At No. 3, Blair and junior Lauren Persson (Barnstable, Mass.) dominated as well by recording a shuout. Saint Anselm did win at the top flight, however, to salvage one point
Rapid Recap (Singles)
- Four straight-set wins at singles gave the Warriors the win. Blair picked up a two-win day on her final home match, sweeping sixth singles (6-4, 6-2)
- Restrepo increased her winning streak to five with a 6-0, 6-1 win at No. 4. Briggs picked up an identical win at No. 5, prevailing by the same set scores
- Persson appeared at second singles in Merrimack's lineup on Friday, notching a two-set win (6-1, 6-2) to cement the Warriors' victory.
Up Next
Merrimack awaits its NE10 Championship fate, which will see the Warriors clinch a spot if Bentley loses twice over its remaining three games. If the Warriors finish in sixth, Merrimack will travel to the third-place finisher for the opening round on Wednesday, Oct. 25.
