4 in a row! Rattlers clinch 4th straight Heartland tournament title

By Ruben Dominguez | St. Mary's Athletics Communications

DALLAS — A phenomenal conference campaign saw the St. Mary's Women's Tennis team capture the Heartland Conference title with a 5-0 win over St. Edward's on Saturday in Dallas.

The victory over their Interstate-35 rivals saw the women capture their fourth straight conference tournament crown in stunning fashion. The women were also able to maintain their flawless record, winning all 10 matches they played at the tournament and also gaining their eighth shutout victory of the season.

The doubles sweep started off with No. 22-ranked team of Cristina Lopez and Hannah Petersen striking first as they defeated Valentina Martinez and Elisa Guillen 8-4 at No. 2 for a 1-0 lead. Ally Maciel and Mariela Sarinana, would follow suit in the pair's first Heartland Conference final, as they won by the same score line, 8-4 over SEU's No. 3 team of Ivana Zecevic and Laura Galvan. The 3-0 lead would be secured by the No. 17 doubles team in the nation, Jamie Lee Denton and Kaylin Kruseman, as they garnered an 8-5 victory over Anjali Sampath and Marissa Williams to take the 3-0 advantage in the affair.

Heading into singles play, St. Mary's would only need two victories to claim the coveted conference prize. It would be Kruseman putting the Snakes one win away as she cruised to a 6-2, 6-1 win over Galvan at No. 3. That would put Lopez in a position that she has seen many times before: with a chance at clinching the conference title.

The senior would come through once again, winning the first set 6-4, and then cruising to a flawless 6-0 second set to give the Rattlers the overall victory.

The No. 12-ranked Rattlers, who now sit at 19-3 on the season, will take their 10-match winning streak into the South Central Regional round, where they will learn their opponent next week. St. Mary's is in line to host the regional as it was ranked No. 1 in the region entering the week.

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Players Mentioned

Jamie Lee Denton: 5' 8"; Senior

Kaylin Kruseman: 5' 4"; Sophomore

Cristina Lopez: 5' 1"; Senior

Ally Maciel: 5' 3"; Freshman

Hannah Petersen: Freshman

Mariela Sarinana: 5' 6"; Junior

Players Mentioned

Jamie Lee Denton
: 5' 8"; Senior

Kaylin Kruseman
: 5' 4"; Sophomore

Cristina Lopez
: 5' 1"; Senior

Ally Maciel
: 5' 3"; Freshman

Hannah Petersen
: Freshman

Mariela Sarinana
: 5' 6"; Junior

St. Mary's University Athletics

Scoreboard

4 in a row! Rattlers clinch 4th straight Heartland tournament title

Players Mentioned

Jamie Lee Denton

Kaylin Kruseman

Cristina Lopez

Ally Maciel

Hannah Petersen

Mariela Sarinana

Players Mentioned

Jamie Lee Denton

Kaylin Kruseman

Cristina Lopez

Ally Maciel

Hannah Petersen

Mariela Sarinana

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