INDIANAPOLIS – Just two days after the Big Red received an at-large bid into this year's NCAA Tournament, the Denison women's tennis squad welcomed more good news on Wednesday evening as the Big Red had three players qualify for this year's NCAA Division III Women's Tennis Singles and Doubles Championships hosted at the Champions Tennis Club in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Denison's trio will compete on May 28-30 with sophomore
Sydney Cianciola qualifying for singles play and seniors
Alex Cash and
Hannah Cianciola earning a spot on the doubles bracket.
Entering this weekend ranked third overall in the NCAA Division III Central Region,
Sydney Cianciola has led the way for Denison in top-flight singles this season thanks to a 4-4 record while also going 2-1 in divisional play.
Sydney Cianciola was recently named the NCAC Newcomer of the Year for her efforts and earned a spot on the All-NCAC East team. She also earned a top-25 victory over the 23
rd ranked singles player in the country, Kenyon's Erika Oku, on April 10 with a three-set win, 7-6 (7-1), 1-6, 7-5. Oku is also currently ranked as the No. 1 singles player in the central region. For her career,
Sydney Cianciola has posted an overall singles record of 7-10 and was named an ITA Scholar-Athlete for the 2019-20 season.
Sydney Cianciola will be matched up with Trinity (Texas) senior Zoe Kaffen, who is currently ranked as the third-best player in the west region and 38th overall in all of Division III. Sporting a season record of 7-7 on the singles court, Kaffen has played all but one of her singles matches in Trinity's top flight, and also owns a 12-5 doubles record with her teammate and sister, Mary Kaffen. Kaffen is a two-time ITA All-American in doubles (2019, 2020) and is a three-time All-SCAC selection from 2017-19.Â
On the doubles courts, Cash and
Hannah Cianciola have become one of the top doubles tandems in all of Division III over the last two seasons. In 11 top-flight doubles matches this season, the nation's 19
th-ranked combo is 9-2 overall, including a 3-2 mark against NCAC East competition. They have also won each of their last five doubles matches leading up to the NCAA Championships and were recently named an All-NCAC East selection as a doubles team. The 2019 All-NCAC honorable mention duo has posted a doubles record of 28-12 over the last three seasons, including a 14-3 mark in the top flight. They are also ranked second overall in doubles in the latest central region rankings.
Cash and
Hannah Cianciola will pair against Julia Bukzin and Julia Lendel from Amherst College in Friday's first round. In only five matches for the Mammoths this season, Bukzin and Lendel have totaled a 4-1 doubles record and are currently ranked as the second-best doubles duo in the northeast region. Bukzin and Lendel carry a four-match winning streak into the first round.
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