Women's Tennis | 5/23/2024 6:00:00 PM

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla.—Looking for their ninth women's tennis national championship, the top-ranked Barry Buccaneers will face a familiar foe in Sunshine State Conference rival #2 Nova Southeastern on Friday afternoon at the NCAA Division II Spring Sports Festival, at Sanlando Park in Altamonte Springs, Fla.

Women's Tennis - Friday, May 24, 1:00 pm; Sanlando Park

The Bucs, six-time defending national champions, are 23-4 on the season, with wins this season at both the ITA Indoor Championship and the Sunshine State Conference Tournament. They are playing in the NCAA Championship match for the seventh-straight year, 10th overall. They advanced at the tournament with a 4-0 wins over the St. Thomas Aquinas Spartans on Monday, Nebraska-Kearney on Tuesday and Midwestern State on Thursday in the semifinal.

The Bucs boast three players and one doubles team featured in the ITA Rankings. Alina Michalitsch, who plays in the top flight, is ranked 38th nationally. She is 14-5 on the season, including a 7-2 mark at No. 1. She provided the clinching point in the Round of 16 match with St. Thomas Aquinas. Viktoriia Dema is ranked No. 38 playing in the second slot. She is 18-4 on the season, including 9-3 at number two. She has won all three of her singles matches at the Festival and has won 11 in a row overall. Clara Versier, who has won 34 consecutive singles matches, is ranked 70th. She has a 17-0 mark for the Bucs this year, including 7-0 at number six, her usual spot in the lineup. She won her first two singles matches in Altamonte Springs, before going unfinished against the Mustangs. 

In doubles, the pair of Dema and Dinara Alloiarova are ranked 34th. Playing together all spring, the pair has posted an 20-4 mark, including a 7-2 record since moving up to the top flight. They have won all three matches at the nationals, including knocking off two teams ranked ahead of them.

The Sharks are 26-4 this season, having beaten Indiana-Pennsylvania, Wayne State and North Georgia all 4-0 to advance to the finals for the second straight year. Three of the Sharks four losses have come to Barry, including the championship matches of the ITA Indoor and the SSC Tournament. 

The Sharks have three ranked singles players and one doubles pair. Natalie Espinal is once again one of the top players in the nation, ranking second in singles. She is 19-3 overall, all coming at No. 1 singles. She is 2-1 against Barry in three meetings this year, including a split with Michalitsch. Lexie Weir, ranked 18th, is 15-9 on the season, including 10-8 at No. 2. She split two matches with the Bucs this year, winning over Alloiarova in the Indoor tournament, but losing to Dema in the SSC Semifinals. Lian Benedejcic is ranked 66th. The Slovenian is 18-2, including 12-1 at No. 4. She lost twice to Alloiarova this year and went unfinished with Versier. 

In doubles, Espinal and Freya Davies at the second-ranked pair in Division II. They are 20-2, all at No. 1. Against the Bucs this year, they were 2-0, with wins over Dema and Alloiarova in the SSC Semifinal and over Versier and Nathalia Gasparin in SSC regular season match. They went unfinished in the Indoors.

NOTEWORTHY:

• Neither Barry nor Nova Southeastern have dropped a point in the Festival. Both teams lost a point in the regional finals, Barry in doubles to Embry-Riddle and NSU to Lynn at No.3 singles.
• After losing the doubles point to the Sharks in all three meetings last year on the way to the title, the Bucs have won both of the neutral-site meetings this year, only losing on the road in the SSC regular season match. 
• Espinal and Davies are the only pair to play in the same flight in all three matches. 
• Barry has dropped the doubles point in seven matches this spring, but has rebounded to win in five of them, including against the Sharks in the SSC regular season. 
• NSU has dropped the doubles point four times this season, two of them to the Bucs. They split the other two matches, beating Wingate 5-2, but losing 4-3 to Lynn. 
• Barry is 33-3 all-time against the Sharks, winning the last 12 in a row and 24 of the last 25.
• This will be the 10th meeting in the last three years between the teams.
• In 2022, Barry won 4-3 in Davie in the regular season, 4-2 in the SSC Tournament in Bradenton and 4-0 in the national semifinals.   
• In 2023, Barry won 4-3 at home in the regular season, 5-2 in the SSC Tournament and 4-1 in the national championship match.
• This year, Barry won 5-2 in Davie in the regular season, then defeated the Sharks 4-2 to win the ITA Indoor and 4-1 in the SSC semifinals.
• Barry has faced 11 Top-10 teams this season, winning 10 of the matches on the court.
• Nova Southeastern has played 13 matches against Top-10 teams this season, going 9-4.
• This is the fifth time in 10 trips to the finals that Barry has faced a conference foe for the title. Barry defeated Lynn in 2011, 2017 and 2019 and NSU in 2023.