Williams bested Washington and Lee, 5-4, to earn the 2008 NCAA Division III Women’s Tennis Championship May 15 at Gustavus Adolphus. It was the Ephs’ third overall championship and the first since claiming back-to-back titles in 2001 and 2002.

Washington and Lee entered the championship match with a 28-0 mark and was ranked
No. 1 in the nation. The Generals last loss came March 31, 2007, against the Ephs in a 5-4 decision.

Washington and Lee took an early lead in the title match when the Generals’ No. 3 doubles tandem of Virginia Dickinson and Kelly Will defeated Nikki Reich and Annie Hancock of Williams, 8-3. The Ephs evened the score by taking the victory at No. 2 doubles but fell behind again when Lauren Caire and Katie Tabb, playing No. 1 doubles for Washington and Lee, downed Cary Gibson and Annie Schneidman, 8-3.

Williams responded in singles action. After squaring the contest, 2-2, on Grace Baljon’s win over Kelly Will, 6-2, 6-0, at No. 2 singles, the Ephs pulled ahead when Ashley Parsons won the No. 3 singles match. Williams’ Gibson and Reich went on to claim wins at No. 1 and No 4 singles to seal the championship for the Ephs.

Alison Swain, Williams’ first-year head coach, said the Ephs and the Generals have developed a great rivalry recently. “We beat them on Spring Break a year ago, 5-4, and then lost to them in the national semifinals last year, 5-0. This year, they beat us, 5-4, on Spring Break and now we bounce back and beat them, 5-4, for the national title. We have such a tremendous respect for their program.”

With the victory, Swain became the second female in NCAA history in any division to capture a national championship as a player and as a coach. Doing so as a coach, Swain said, was much more emotional.

“This is an amazing moment,” said Swain, who was a member of Williams’ 2001 national title team. “I am much more emotional as a coach than I was as player. I am so proud of this group. It took everything we had and this group stuck with it to the very end.”

Williams closed out the season with a 21-3 record.

Brittany Berckes and Alicia Menezes of Amherst successfully defended their doubles championship on May 18 after defeating Denison’s Kristin Cobb and Marta Drane.

Berckes and Menezes, who won the match 6-4, 6-3, became the fourth straight doubles team to capture back-to-back titles since 2001.

Top-seeded Siobhan Finicane of Pomona-Pitzer became the first women’s tennis player from the school since 1994 to win a singles title when she defeated Williams’ Cary Gibson, 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 for the Division III crown. Gibson also made school history. She became the first women’s tennis player at Williams to appear in a singles championship match.

Quarterfinals

Pomona Pitzer 5, Bowdoin 3; Williams 5, Mary Washington 0; Denison 5, Emory 2; Wash. & Lee 5, Gust. Adolphus 3.

Semifinals

Williams 5, Pomona-Pitzer 2; Wash. & Lee 5, Denison 1.

Third-place match

Denison 5, Pomona-Pitzer 2.

Doubles: No. 1 -- Siobhan Finicane-Olivia Muesse, Pomona-Pitzer, def. Marta Drane-Kristin Cobb, Denison, 8-3; No. 2 -- Meghan Damico-Kendra Murray, Denison, def. Rebecca Lange-Kasyn Stevenson, Pomona-Pitzer, 9-7; No. 3 -- Kara Zdanowski-Erin Gorsich, Denison, def. Zoe Fisher-Alex Margolin, Pomona-Pitzer, 8-4.

Singles: No. 1 -- Finicane, Pomona-Pitzer, def. Damico, Denison, 6-2, 6-0; No. 2 -- Cobb, Denison, def. Lange, Pomona-Pitzer, 6-3, 6-2; No. 3 -- Olivia Muesse, Pomona-Pitzer, vs. Drane, Denison, 7-5, 3-5, unfinished; No. 4 -- Gorsich, Denison, def. Kathryn Myers, Pomona-Pitzer, 6-2, 6-3; No. 5 -- Zdanowski, Denison, def. Lindsay Clough, Pomona-Pitzer, 6-0, 6-0; No. 6 -- Kasyn Stevenson, Pomona-Pitzer, vs. Kendra Murray, Denison, 4-6, 5-4, unfinished.

Championship

Williams 5, Wash. & Lee 4.

Doubles: No. 1 -- Lauren Claire-Katie Tabb, Wash. & Lee, def. Cary Gibson-Annie Schneidman, Williams, 8-3; No. 2 -- Grace Baljon-Allison Rottkamp, Williams, def. Catherine Reed-Leah Weston, Wash. & Lee, 8-6; No. 3 -- Virginia Dickinson-Kelly Will, Wash. & Lee, def. Nicole Reich-Annie Hancock, Williams, 8-3.

Singles: No. 1 -- Gibson, Williams, def. Tabb, Wash. & Lee, 2-6, 6-4, 6-3; No. 2 -- Baljon, Williams, def. Will, Wash. & Lee, 6-2, 6-0; No. 3 -- Ashley Parsons, Williams, def. Caire, Wash. & Lee, 7-6(7-2), 6-0; No. 4 -- Reich, Williams, def. Weston, Wash. & Lee, 6-2, 5-7, 6-1; No. 5 -- Rebecca Timmis, Wash. & Lee, def. Rottkamp, Williams, 6-4, 6-1; No. 6 -- Meg Spalitta, Wash. & Lee, def. Hancock, Williams, 5-7, 6-1, 6-1.

Individual results

First round: Siobhan Finicane, Pomona-Pitzer, def. Meghan Damico, Denison, 6-2, 6-1; Julia Browne, Tufts, def. Janelle Arita, DePauw, 6-0, 5-7, 6-4; Marissa Lin, Chicago, def. Kelly Will, Wash. & Lee, 2-6, 6-3, 6-1; Kristen Raymond, Bowdoin, def. Tshema Nash, Emory, 6-3, 6-2; Leslie Hansen, MIT, def. Jordan Hook, Wheaton (Ill.), 7-6, 7-6; Lauren Caire, Wash. & Lee, def. Elizabeth Lewis, Chapman, 6-3, 6-3; Gab Carvalho, Sewanee, def. Rachel Miller, Redlands, 5-7, 6-0, 6-3; Grace Baljon, Williams, def. Molly Fiala, Coe, 6-1, 6-2; Kristin Cobb, Denison, def. Rachel Wallwork, Swarthmore, 6-0, 6-4; Cary Gibson, Williams, def. Mary Katherine Stone, Sewanee, 6-1, 6-3; Jenna Mezin, Wellesley, def. Alicia Hunt, Trinity (Tex.), 6-0, 6-3; Brittany Berckes, Amherst, def. Jenni White, Gust. Adolphus, 6-3, 6-2; Vindya Dayananda, Chicago, def. Jessica Ruth, UC Santa Cruz, 6-0, 5-7, 7-6; Nicole Pontee, Vassar, def. Rebecca Morse-Karzen, Mary Washington, 4-6, 6-2, 6-4; Rebecca Lange, Pomona-Pitzer, def. Kelly Buckley, DePauw, 7-6, 6-4; Meghan McCooey, Tufts, def. Katie Tabb, Wash. & Lee, 1-6, 7-5, 6-2.

Second round: Finicane, Pomona-Pitzer, def. Browne, Tufts, 6-2, 6-0; Raymond, Bowdoin, def. Lin, Chicago, 6-0, 6-1; Caire, Wash. & Lee, def. Hansen, MIT, 6-3, 6-0; Baljon, Williams, def. Carvalho, Sewanee, 2-6, 6-2, 7-5; Gibson, Williams, def. Cobb, Denison, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1; Berckes, Amherst, def. Mezin, Wellesley, 6-2, 7-5; Pontee, Vassar, def. Dayananda, Chicago, 6-0, 3-6, 7-5; McCooey, Tufts, def. Lange, Pomona-Pitzer, 6-2, 6-4;

Quarterfinals: Finicane, Pomona-Pitzer, def. Raymond, Bowdoin, 6-4, 6-2; Baljon, Williams, def. Caire, Wash. & Lee, 7-6, 6-4; Gibson, Williams, def. Berckes, Amherst, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1; McCooey, Tufts, def. Pontee, Vassar, 7-5, 6-3.

Semifinals: Finicane, Pomona-Pitzer, def. Baljon, Williams, 6-4, 6-0; Gibson, Williams, def. McCooey, Tufts, 6-3, 6-2.

Championship: Finicane, Pomona-Pitzer, def. Gibson, Williams, 6-3, 5-7, 6-2.

Doubles

First round: Tshema Nash-Sabra Rogers, Emory, def. Siobhan Finicane-Olivia Muesse, Pomona-Pitzer, 6-2, 6-4; Erin Andrade-Kayla Smith, DePauw, def. Paige Sumida-Whitney Waters, Redlands, 6-2, 3-6, 7-5; Brittany Berckes-Alicia Menezes, Amherst, def. Sierra Krebsbach-Jenni White, Gust. Adolphus, 6-3, 6-3; Natalia Fugate-Rebecca Morse-Karsen, Mary Washington, def. Vindya Dayananda-Marissa Lin, Chicago, 6-2, 6-3; Kristin Cobb-Marta Drane, Denison, def. Gab Carvalho-Jordan Casey, Sewanee, 6-3, 6-1; Alicia Hunt-Laura Steinmetz, Trinity (Tex.), def. Sara Federschmidt-Jordan Hook, Wheaton (Ill.), 6-4, 6-1; Jennifer Chui-Amy Staloch, Carnegie Mellon, def. Jenna Mezin-Hali Walther, Wellesley, 6-4, 3-6, 6-2; Lauren Caire-Katie Tabb, Wash. & Lee, def. Sallie Katter-Kasey Kuenzli, Linfield, 6-1, 6-3.

Quarterfinals: Nash-Rogers, Emory, def. Andrade-Smith, DePauw, 6-0, 6-3; Berckes-Menezes, Amherst, def. Fugate-Morse-Karzen, Mary Washington, 6-0, 7-5; Hunt-Steinmetz, Trinity (Tex.), def. Cobb-Drane, Denison, 7-6, 1-6, 6-3; Caire-Tabb, Wash. & Lee, def. Chui-Staloch, Carnegie Mellon, 7-5, 3-6, 6-4.

Semifinals: Berckes-Menezes, Amherst, def. Nash-Rogers, Emory, 3-6, 6-3, 6-3; Cobb-Drane, Denison, def. Chui-Staloch, Carnegie Mellon, 6-2, 6-4.

Championship: Berckes-Menezes, Amherst, def. Cobb-Drane, Denison, 6-4, 6-3.