SAN ANTONIO – Trinity's 16th-ranked women's tennis team has officially turned its attention to the postseason in 2023, as the Tigers will begin play at the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championships this weekend at Southwestern University.

Trinity wrapped up the regular season with a pair of SCAC matches last weekend, scoring a 7-2 road win over No. 20 Southwestern University, and then finishing its home schedule with a 9-0 win over Schreiner University. The Tigers are 14-4 heading into the conference tournament and are riding a six-match winning streak. Prior to this past weekend, Trinity also swept Texas Lutheran University, University of St. Thomas, and Austin College to finish undefeated at 5-0 in SCAC play.

Trinity Levy (Camarillo, Calif. / Weil Tennis Academy) holds a 12-3 singles record this season to lead the Tiger team, while Cate Cushing (Colleyville, Texas / Heritage) has an 11-5 record this year. Both Tigers have won five straight singles matches heading into the weekend. Ruth Hill (Abilene, Texas / Abilene) and Ellie Hughes (Austin, Texas / Vandegrift) both have nine singles wins, while Olivia Kim (Phoenix, Ariz. / Desert Mountain) and Ella Cummings (Albuquerque, N.M. / Sandia) have won eight times in dual-match action.

Trinity doubles teams of Cushing/Levy and Kim/Hill hold identical 13-4 records to lead the team so far this season, though Brooke Belitz (Scottsdale, Ariz. / Notre Dame Prep) and Hughes have nine wins against just two defeats.

ITA Rankings: New rankings coming soon
Trinity is ranked 16th in NCAA III this season, while also holding a No. 3 ranking in the West Region according to the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings. Three Tiger singles players are ranked in the top 25 in the region, while Trinity also has two doubles teams in the top 10. Hill leads the way in singles at the fifth-ranked player in the region, while Kim (No. 21) and Levy (No. 22) are also in the mix. Hill and Kim are the third-ranked doubles team in the West, while Cushing and Levy hold the region's eighth spot. The ITA is scheduled to release its next set of rankings on Friday, April 28.

Awards and Honors: Another SCAC Sweep!
Trinity swept the SCAC Women's Tennis Player of the Week awards for the fifth time this season, as well as the fourth time in the last five weeks. Levy and Cushing won for the second time this season after scoring an 8-7 doubles win at line two against Southwestern last weekend, giving Trinity a 2-1 lead heading into singles. Kim won her first Singles Player of the Week honor this year after clinching the Southwestern match with her line two match 6-1, 7-6.

Preview: SCAC Championships
Trinity is the top seed at this weekend's SCAC Tournament and will receive the only bye in the seven-team event. No. 20 Southwestern, also the fourth-ranked team in the region, will be the No. 2 seed this weekend. Colorado College is ranked 17th in the West and will be the third-seeded team, followed by Schreiner in fourth, St. Thomas fifth, Texas Lutheran sixth, and Austin College seventh.

Trinity will await the winner of the Schreiner/St. Thomas matchup in the SCAC Semifinals on Saturday evening at 6:00 p.m. Schreiner and St. Thomas will be the only match on the schedule for Friday, as weather conditions have led to the schedule being adjusted. The tournament will now begin on Thursday afternoon as Colorado College takes on Texas Lutheran at 3:30 p.m. Southwestern will host Austin College at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, with the winners from Thursday playing in the other semifinal at 3:00 p.m. Saturday. Sunday's Third Place Match will be at 12:00 p.m. Sunday, followed by the SCAC Championship at 2:00 p.m.

Southwestern is the only other team with regionally-ranked players, featuring two singles players and one doubles team for the Pirates. Senior Nina Mitrofanova is 12th in the region in singles, while fellow senior Emma Kesterson is just inside the top 25 at the 24th spot. Mitrofanova and sophomore Lydia Lee are also the region's 12th-ranked doubles team.

Trinity has won 24 total SCAC Championships, which is second only to the Tiger men's tennis team for the most titles by one school in any sport. Trinity has won nine of the last 10 championships, with Southwestern's 5-4 win in 2021 the only blip in that time span. Trinity and Southwestern have met in the SCAC Championship Match every year since 2016 – a streak of six straight conference tournament finales. Trinity has had 13 SCAC Player of the Year award-winners and three recipients of the SCAC Newcomer of the Year award. Cushing was the 2021 Newcomer of the Year, while Kim snagged the award last year.

Looking Ahead: NCAA Playoffs
The winner of this weekend's SCAC Tournament will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Playoffs, which begin the following weekend (May 5-7). The NCAA will announce the full tournament field on Monday, May 1. Individual singles and doubles participants in the NCAA Championships will be announced on May 3. The NCAA Quarterfinals, Semifinals, and Finals will take place May 13-17 at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Florida. The Singles and Doubles Championships will be held May 18-22 at the same site.