Slippery Rock University’s women’s tennis team earned the No. 3 spot in the Atlantic Region in the NCAA Division II’s first regional rankings of the season, released Wednesday by the NCAA Women’s Tennis Committee.
These rankings are used to determine which teams qualify for the NCAA Tournament. The Atlantic Region includes schools from the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC), Mountain East Conference (MEC), Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA), and select independent institutions.
Each of the region’s three conference champions receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The next four highest-ranked teams will receive at-large bids. Updated rankings will be posted weekly through the end of the season, with the final 48-team NCAA Tournament field announced at 8:30 p.m. on May 5 on NCAA.com.
In this week’s rankings, the University of Charleston claimed the top spot, followed by Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP), Slippery Rock, Fairmont State, and Salem University. Shaw University ranked sixth, with Bloomsburg, Bluefield State, and East Stroudsburg rounding out the top nine.
Only results through April 20 were considered in the current rankings, so Slippery Rock’s 7-0 win over California (Pa.) on Wednesday will be factored into next week’s update.
Slippery Rock’s strong tournament resume includes a 9-4 record against Division II opponents and an 8-2 mark in regional play. SRU also holds a 2-2 record against other regionally ranked teams, with wins over Salem and Fairmont State and losses to Charleston and IUP.
The team improved to 11-8 overall and 5-1 in PSAC West play with its shutout win over California. That victory marked the Rock’s fifth straight shutout and secured a home match in the PSAC Tournament quarterfinals. Slippery Rock will face California again on April 29 at 4 p.m. at the SRU Tennis Courts.
A consistent postseason presence, Slippery Rock has qualified for the NCAA Tournament 21 times since the 1995-96 season, including each of the last six years the tournament has been held.
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