Endicott women's tennis predicted to finish second in CCC standings
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) released their annual women's tennis preseason poll and Endicott was predicted to finish runner up to Nichols in the conference standings.
2012 CCC Women's Tennis Preseason Poll Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) released their annual women's tennis preseason poll and Endicott was predicted to finish runner up to Nichols in the conference standings.
The poll, which was voted upon by the league's head coaches and announced today by Commissioner Gregg M. Kaye, revealed that the Gulls, who won the 2011 CCC Championship over Nichols 5-3 and earned a bid into the NCAA Tournament, received no first place votes. Endicott received 67 total points, 13 shy of preseason favorite Nichols who got eight of nine first place votes. Salve Regina (51) was the only other team to receive a first place vote but sits in fourth place behind third place team Roger Williams (64).
The 2011-12 Endicott women's tennis season was one to remember as the Gulls returned to CCC Championship glory, capturing their second conference title in program history and the second in the past four years, and battled to a narrow loss in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament.
The Gulls turned in an overall record of 16-6 through the fall and spring portions of their schedules, coming close to the program record of 18 wins set during in the 2008-09 championship season. Endicott was a stellar 7-1 in conference matches during the fall, earned the #2 seed in the CCC Tournament, and upset top-seeded Nichols 5-3 in the title match on the road.
Six players were recognized for their athletic efforts on the court including All-CCC First Team Singles and Second Team Doubles (with Emily Annis) winner Kate Cioffi who ended her career with an overall record of 52-14 in singles and 40-23 in doubles. Her 92 overall victories ranks her third all-time in Endicott women's tennis history. Cioffi was also an accomplished student as she was recognized as a Capital One Academic All-District First Teamer, a three-time CCC Academic All-Conference winner, and a Senior Academic Award Recipient from the School of Sport Science and Fitness Studies.
Under new leadership in head coach Jeremy Howard and without Cioffi as well as All-CCC winners Emily Annis and Laura MacLeod, the Blue and Green will be challenged as they campaign towards another deep playoff run this fall. Endicott does, however, return a strong core of players with a high level of talent and experience that look to keep the Gulls atop the league standings.
That leadership starts with senior captains Gina Pinciaro and Rachel Fenstermaker who will lead a roster of eight returners and four newcomers. Pinciaro is coming off a career year in which she went 11-3 overall in singles including a perfect 5-0 mark against conference foes. She solidified Endicott's CCC Championship victory with a 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 win at #6 singles as the Gulls erased a 2-1 doubles deficit to win the title. Fenstermaker split her two singles matches last season but shined in doubles play with a 3-0 record.
Endicott's top returners include junior Emilie Cloutier and sophomores Natalie Egbert and Amy Heacox who each earned All-CCC accolades in both singles and doubles play. Cloutier joined Cioffi on the All-CCC First Team Singles list after going 7-4 (4-1 CCC) at the #2 singles position. She, along with #3 doubles partner Amy Heacox, nearly went undefeated at 14-1 overall but did manage to win all six matches against the CCC. The duo was named All-CCC Honorable Mention Doubles for their efforts.
For the entire fall season Heacox was unstoppable on the singles court as she accumulated 11 wins and dropped only one set at the #3 flight. Heacox was placed on the All-CCC Second Team Singles squad along with her doubles recognition.
Egbert was stellar in her rookie season and was recognized as an All-CCC Honorable Mention Singles and All-CCC Honorable Mention Doubles player (with Laura MacLeod). The freshman went 12-4 overall, including a 10-2 mark at #5 singles. She was 5-0 in conference singles matches. In doubles play, she and MacLeod were 11-6 as a duo with nine wins coming at the #2 position and two more coming at the top spot.
The Gulls will also welcome back junior Emily McDonough and sophomore Chrissy Martel to compete for playing time this fall. Martel impressed with a 5-0 singles record and 2-0 doubles mark in limited action last year while McDonough was 3-1 (3-0 CCC) in singles action.
Five newcomers look to vie for a spot in the lineup this fall as Savannah Deady, Annie Gluskin, Brittany Potter, Sarah Hill, and Suzie Newman join the Gulls program.
After two weeks of preseason, Endicott kicks off their 2012-13 campaign on the road on Friday, August 31st at Colby-Sawyer. Endicott's home opener and conference schedule opener will be on Saturday, September 8th against Western New England at the South Campus Courts. On Homecoming Weekend, the Gulls face off against Eastern Nazarene and four days later host Nichols in a rematch of the 2011 CCC Championship match. CCC Tournament play begins on Tuesday, October 9th with quarterfinal action and the 2012 champion being crowned on Saturday, October 20th.