Case Closed

Top 2 Meet In Women's Net Final; Johnnies Lead Men's Golf; Jays, Gulls Perched At No. 1; Crews Selected for NCAAs

Author

Steve Ulrich
May 17, 2023 • Estimated Reading Time: 9 minutes

MAY 17, 2023 | written by STEVE ULRICH

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» 👋 Hi Wednesday. One more day, diamond folk.

» Happening Today: NCAA DIII Women’s Tennis Final; NCAA DIII Men’s Golf 2nd Round; NCAA Regional Rules Seminar (through Thursday); NCAA Swimming and Diving Rules Committee (through Thursday).

TOP STORY
1. Case Closed

It was a history-making night not only for the men’s tennis team, but for Case Western Reserve University athletics as well as the Spartans captured the school’s first national title in any sport, defeating Tufts, 5-2.

CWRU (33-4) jumped out to a 3-0 lead after sweeping the second-ranked Jumbos (24-2) in doubles. Tufts battled back with wins at No. 4 and 6 singles, but the Spartans pulled within one point of victory as sophomore Ajay Mahenthiran earned a 6-1, 6-2 win at No. 5.

It was left to No. 1 James Hopper to clinch the title for Case, downing his opponent, 6-4, 6-4.

CWRU was flawless against Division III opposition during the year, going 28-0 against DIII teams, and ended the campaign on a 19-match winning streak. The Spartans also claimed its first University Athletic Association Championship and won the ITA Indoor National Championship for the second-straight year during its historic 2023 campaign.

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TENNIS (W)
2. No. 1 and No. 2 Set For The Final

It will be a rematch of the 2022 final as the two top-ranked teams in the country - Chicago and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps - captured 5-1 semifinal victories to reach the championship match.

#1 Chicago d. #4 Middlebury, 5-1

After winning two of the three doubles matches, the Stags (23-0) produced straight-set victories at Nos. 3, 4 and 6 to upend the Panthers and reach the championship match for the second straight season,

#2 Claremont-M-S d. #7 Emory, 5-1

The Athenas (26-1) took straight-set singles wins at Nos. 1, 2 and 6 singles to put away Emory (14-6) and advance to the NCAA Division III final with a chance to defend its 2022 title.

GOLF (M)
3. Johnnies Lead After 18 Holes

The 2023 NCAA Division III Men’s Golf Championship is off to a hot start with three teams posting under-par team scores to highlight day one.

Saint John’s posted a four-under par 284 over the Keene Trace GC NCAA Division III layout to take a one-shot lead over Illinois Wesleyan (285) and two over Christopher Newport (286).

The Titans’ Bobby Beaubien and Emory’s Brian Hanson share the individual lead after recording five-under-par 67s. Four players are one back, including the Johnnies’ Sam Berger, St. Thomas’ Jonathan Miller, Washington & Jefferson’s Cade Patterson, and Dylan Gallagher of Franklin & Marshall.

Kevin Jiang of Claremont-M-S had a hole-in-one on the 181-yard, par-3 second hole on his way to a 75.

BASEBALL
4. Blue Jays Perched Atop Top 25

Kieren Collins, Johns Hopkins

The final regular-season top 25 poll from D3baseball.com finds Johns Hopkins sitting atop the rankings headed into the NCAA tournament. The Blue Jays, champions of the Centennial Conference, are 39-4 and received 23 of the 25 first-place ballots.

  1. Johns Hopkins (23), 39-4

  2. Salisbury (2), 30-5

  3. Shenandoah, 38-7

  4. Endicott, 39-6

  5. Aurora, 39-4

  6. Lynchburg, 38-6

  7. Birmingham-Southern, 36-9

  8. Wheaton, Mass., 37-6

  9. Denison, 34-8

  10. Christopher Newport, 31-9

» Multiple Ranked Teams In Regional: 1-Johns Hopkins and 20-Randolph-Macon; 14-Eastern Connecticut and 22-Cortland; 9-Denison and 12-Baldwin Wallace; 13-UW-La Crosse and 24-Buena Vista; 15-UW-Stevens Point and 17-Augustana; 3-Shenandoah and 10-Christopher Newport; 6-Lynchburg and 18-NC Wesleyan; 21-Arcadia and 23-Rowan.

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SOFTBALL
5. Sea Gulls Continue To Fly High

Madi Lemon, Salisbury

Salisbury is the unanimous No. 1 team in DIII softball according to the NFCA who released its final regular season poll of 2023.

  1. Salisbury (10), 36-2

  2. Berry, 36-4

  3. Case Western Reserve, 35-3

  4. Linfield, 41-4

  5. Trine, 32-4

  6. Tufts, 35-3

  7. Christopher Newport, 24-8

  8. Texas Lutheran, 38-6

  9. East Texas Baptist, 35-5

  10. Randolph-Macon, 36-8

» Multiple Ranked Teams in Regional: 17-Rochester and 24-Eastern Connecticut; 14-Concordia (Wis.), 21-UW-Oshkosh and 23-Luther; 11-Bethel and 22-Central; 2-Berry and 15-Mary Hardin-Baylor; 8-Texas Lutheran and 9-East Texas Baptist.

ROWING
6. NCAA Field Set

photo by Scott Taetsch

The NCAA Division III Women’s Rowing Committee selected eight institutions to compete for the National Championship May 26-27 at Cooper River Park in Pennsauken, N.J.

Four crews received automatic qualification - Ithaca (Liberty), Washington College (Mid-Atlantic), Williams (NESCAC) and defending champ Wellesley (NEWMAC). The NESCAC had three representatives earn at-large berths in Bates, Tufts and Wesleyan, while Lewis & Clark will carry the mantle for the Northwest Conference.

NEWS
7. Lightning Round ⚡️

🗞 News. New York lawmakers are again trying to ban public and private colleges in the state from offering legacy preferences or early decisions in admissions. Bills in the New York Assembly and Senate would fine institutions that violate the prohibition. The fine would equal 10% of the number of full-time equivalent first-year students enrolled the prior year multiplied by an institution’s tuition and fees.

🎂 Happy Birthday. Cake and candles for Shannon Algeo.

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TRANSACTIONS
8. Comings and Goings

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