SAN ANTONIO – No. 15 Trinity University Women's Tennis begins its month-long NCAA III test Wednesday as it hosts No. 1 University of Chicago for the first of eight nationally ranked opponents over its next nine matches.
 
The Tigers (6-2) are undefeated against non-NCAA I competitors this season, allowing just three points in those six matches (7-2, v. NCAA II Dallas Baptist; 8-1 at Hardin-Simmons) and opened the 2023 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference schedule with a pair of shutouts over Texas Lutheran University and University of St. Thomas on February 18.
 
Trinity has been on hiatus since its February 24 home victory over Dallas Baptist University, which will be the only match played in the 23 days prior to Wednesday's bout with the 2022 NCAA III Championship runners-up from Chicago.
 
Following this weekend's trip to the East Coast, No. 15 Women's Tennis will battle five more teams currently ranked nationally by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA):

• vs. No. 26 Johns Hopkins University (MD); March 23
• vs. No. 24 Colby College (ME); March 24
• vs. No. 28 University of Texas-Dallas; April 2
• at No. 18 Southwestern University; April 7
• at No. 17 Washington University in St. Louis; April 14

 
NCAA III Rankings: First New Team Rankings; Player Rankings Come March 24
Trinity moved up one spot from the preseason rankings released January 17 to No. 15 in Friday's announcement, the fourth-highest of nine programs ranked in the nation's top 40 from the West Region.
 
The first player rankings of the spring are slated for a March 24 release. Until then, the end-of-fall rankings will remain. For the Tigers, first-year Trinity Levy (Camarillo, Calif. / Weil Tennis Academy) remains 28^th, followed by sophomore Ruth Hill (Abilene, Texas / Abilene) at No. 45. Levy and doubles partner junior Cate Cushing (Colleyville, Texas / Heritage) are No. 16 in NCAA III, then the sophomore duo of Hill and Olivia Kim (Phoenix, Ariz. / Desert Mountain) round out the nation's top-25.
 
Preview: Bring It On…
On the Maroons: Chicago comes to San Antonio after a 10-day recovery as March 5's 5-1 victory over then-No. 1 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges (CA) in the ITA Indoor National Championship, the finale to a dominant three-round performance in the event, represents the Maroons' last contest.
 
Sophomore Sylwia Mikos leads four ranked singles players for Chicago as the reigning ITA Cup champion from last fall, ahead of No. 15 Miranda Yuan, No. 21 Nicole Geller and No. 33 Shianna Guo. The doubles teams of Guo/Mikos, Perene Wang/Claudia Ng and Yuan/Brooke Pedersen are also ranked in NCAA III, at No. 2, No. 3 and No. 22 respectively.
 
Mikos is one of three sisters who have had success in intercollegiate competition as her twin older sisters, Agata and Marta, play for NCAA I Georgetown University (DC) and Washington & Lee. Marta finished last fall as NCAA III's No. 19 singles player.
 
On the Eagles: Mary Washington opens its slate in its own Blue-Grey Invitational Friday against No. 31 Skidmore College (NY) before hosting Trinity Saturday afternoon. The Tigers have faced UMW just twice over the last decade for a series split, though Trinity took last season's matchup, 5-4, in San Antonio.
 
The Eagles are 3-3 in dual matches so far this spring, but have been no strangers to stiff competition themselves having battled NCAA I George Mason University as well as No. 12 Case Western Reserve University (OH) and a coast-to-coast trip to visit No. 34 Chapman University, No. 14 University of Redlands and No. 20 California Institute of Technology.
 
Hana Kimmey and Amanda Hagino represent Mary Washington in the NCAA III doubles rankings at No. 20.
 
On the Generals: Washington & Lee will also battle Skidmore Saturday afternoon ahead Sunday morning's bout with the Tigers. The two programs have also met just twice in the last 11 seasons, again for a series split. The series is tied at nine points apiece as each program has a 5-4 victory in its pocket though the March 2017 affair at W&L went in favor of the host.
 
The Generals posted four dual matches in the fall, all Old Dominion Athletic Conference victories but are only 1-3 since opening the spring schedule—though, like their counterparts to the east—have already earned the title of 'battle-tested' after matchups with No. 12 Case Western, No. 10 University of the South (TN) and No. 17 WashU.
 
The doubles team of Lauren Long and Margaret Carlton lead the rankings representation for Washington & Lee as NCAA III's No. 12 duo, along with the 46^th-ranked singles player of Izzy Koziol.
 
On the Horizon: Action-Packed Slate, SCAC Championship…
No. 15 Trinity Women's Tennis returns to San Antonio March 23 to host No. 26 Johns Hopkins for the first of a four-match homestand that lasts through April 2. Three of its next five ranked matchups after this weekend fall during the home period.
 
After visits to No. 18 Southwestern and No. 17 WashU, the Tigers will have just two more matches before the 2023 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship, hosted by the 18^th-ranked Pirates in Georgetown, Texas.