NEED TO KNOW:
Score: Piedmont 5, Covenant 1
Records: Piedmont, 19-2; Covenant, 15-8
ROME, Ga. – The Piedmont women's tennis team won its second consecutive conference championship, besting Covenant 5-1 on Saturday afternoon in Rome to win the inaugural Collegiate Conference of the South Tournament.
Although the Scots pushed the Lady Lions in doubles, taking a point off the Lions, Piedmont responded with a dominant effort in singles play, clinching with three straight-set wins at No. 4 through No. 6 while also taking the first set at No. 1, 2 and 3.
The Lady Lions were clinical in doubles wins at No. 1 and No. 2, racing out to early leads and never looking back.
ALYSSA MCSPADDEN and
ABBEY GRACE VENHAM clinched first, rolling to an 8-3 win at No. 2, finishing just ahead of
BRI LAIDMAN and
IMANI VINCENT, who polished off an 8-4 victory at No. 1.
However, the Scots did not go away easily, battling to come back in a tiebreaker and take the match at No. 3, 8-7 (5).
It was McSpadden who clinched first, rolling to a dominant 6-2, 6-0 win at No. 5 to make it 3-1 in favor of Piedmont. The win moves McSpadden to an incredible 12-0 this season in dual singles matches and the sophomore was named CCS Tournament MVP after the match.
Then, it became a race to see who could finish first and earn the clinch.
DAKOTA WILKES fought hard to win her first set, 6-4, and then took control quickly in the second, clinching with a 6-4, 6-1 win at No. 4 to put the Lions one win away.
The clinch came in the form of newcomer
BRI LAIDMAN, who barely beat
IMANI VINCENT to the clinch. Laidman won 6-3, 6-2 while Vincent was up 5-3 in the second set and the celebration began.
After last season's dramatic finishes to take the USA South Tournament, 2023 brought a more clinical and dominant effort from Piedmont.
The Lady Lions conclude the regular season at an incredible 19-2 and will await their fate to see if they can secure an at-large selection to the NCAA Tournament.
TURNING POINT:
- After the Scots grabbed momentum by winning a tiebreaker at No. 3 doubles to secure a point, Piedmont immediately fought back by taking all six first sets in singles.
STANDOUT PERFORMANCES:
- McSpadden earned Tournament MVP honors, clinching the team's first doubles point (with
ABBEY GRACE VENHAM) and singles point on the way to the title
- Wilkes earned All-Tournament honors by going 2-0 in singles play during the tournament.
- In her first spring with the team, Laidman earned the clinch while also partnering with
IMANI VINCENT to win 8-3 at No. 1 doubles.
MAKING HISTORY:
- With her doubles win on Saturday, Vincent now holds the Piedmont career record for combined wins with 119.
HOW TO FOLLOW:
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