PATCHOGUE, N.Y. – Capping off the greatest single-season turnaround in program history, the Manhattanville College women's tennis team won the Skyline Conference Championship Tournament on Thursday night, defeating top-seeded Saint Joseph's Long Island by a final of 5-4.

The win is the Valiants' first Conference Championship since 2006 and their fourth overall in program history. Unlike the previous titles, which came in three straight years from 2004 to 2006, the 2023 title comes off a winless 0-10 campaign by the team a season ago. Now, the Valiants have the distinction of going from worst to first, sitting atop the Skyline as conference champions.

Manhattanville began its march to the title by taking two of the three doubles flights. Suzi Doyle (Devon, England/Exeter College) and Addison-Mercedes Ortiz (Bronx, N.Y./High School for Health Professions and Human Services) continued their unbeaten streak as a pairing as they picked up an 8-0 sweep of Victoria Corcoran and Madi Beatty in the No. 2 flight. The Golden Eagles evened things up with a sweep of their own in the No. 3 matchup as Sara King (Schenectady, N.Y./Scotia-Glenville) and Elizabeth Dolce (Bronx, N.Y./Riverdale Kingsbridge Academy) were bested by Haley Celona and Madison DiPalo, 0-8. All eyes turned to the show court which saw Bea Pretnar (Mohegan Lake, N.Y.) and Keto Karkashadze (Tbilisi, Georgia/New School International) logged in a battle with Natalie Kopala and Angela Avecillas Martinez. A back-and-forth affair saw the Valiant tandem earn an 8-5 win, taking a 2-1 lead into singles action.

The Golden Eagles tied the match up and struck first in singles as DiPalo beat King 6-0, 2-6 in the No. 5 flight. Doyle responded soon after by earning a 6-1, 6-3 win over Avecillas Martinez in the No. 2 matchup. With Pretnar taking care of business in the top flight against Kopala 6-2, 6-4, the Valiants were on the brink of the championship, leading 4-2.

With the title hanging in the balance, Saint Joseph's battled back to take the next two singles flights. Dolce was bested by Morgan Wind in the No. 6 flight before Karkashadze fell to Celona in a three-setter in the No. 4 matchup to tie the match up at 4-4.

The crown would be decided in the No. 3 matchup of Ortiz vs Allison Goodyear. After Goodyear took the opening set 6-2, the Valiants' rookie responded with a 6-1 victory. The only fitting finish for a conference championship, a breaker third set would be the decider. After a back-and-forth battle, Ortiz emerged victorious 7-5 to earn the Valiants their first conference championship in 17 years.

After going 4-0 in the postseason in the top position, Pretnar was named Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.

Up Next
The Valiants will enjoy some time away from action before returning to the courts for spring matchups after the new year. With tonight's win, the Valiants earn the conference's automatic berth for May;s 2024 NCAA Division III Tennis Championships.

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