BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – For the second straight season, the Carleton College women's tennis team dominated the end of season awards handed out by the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) coaches. The Knights took home a whopping 16 total awards, including: MIAC Singles Player of the Year, MIAC Doubles Team of the Year, four players that were All-MIAC in singles, six that were All-MIAC for doubles, three members of the All-Playoff Team, and the MIAC Coach of the Year Award.
This is the second time (also 2006) that Carleton earned 10 All-MIAC awards in singles and doubles.
As a team, the Knights–who enter the NCAA Championships ranked No. 17 in the nation–finished 89-6 in singles matches, including 59-1 during conference play. Carleton went 48-3 in doubles matches, including a staggering 30-0 in conference action.
Junior
Amelia Asfaw was named the MIAC Women's Tennis Singles Player of the Year, going a perfect 12-0 on the regular season and dropping just one set across the entire season from her No. 1 singles position. Asfaw was joined by
Mary Hose on the MIAC Women's Tennis Doubles Team of the Year, a tandem that was a perfect 12-0 and went to only three tiebreaks on the year. Both Hose and Asfaw were named to the All-MIAC Singles Team, as Hose went 15-1 mostly from No. 2 singles, with her only loss coming to DII-Minnesota State Mankato. Outside of that match, Hose didn't lose a single set, with only two sets finishing closer than 6-2 in her favor.
Joining Asfaw and Hose on the All-MIAC Singles Team were junior
Miriam Shteyman and first-year
Kiley Pickens. Shteyman finished the season 13-2, mostly at No. 4 singles, and was a perfect 10-0 in MIAC play. Shteyman lost only 5 sets all season, and also went 3-0 in doubles matches with various partners this season. Pickens, in her first season at Carleton, went an outstanding 16-0, mostly from No. 5 singles. Pickens lost only two sets among those 16 matches completed, with her only non-victory coming in an unfinished match during the MIAC playoffs.
Joining Asfaw and Hose on the All-MIAC Doubles Team were juniors
Mariam Nechiporuk and
Ingrid Smith, as well as first-years
Kat Smiricinschi and
Ryann Witter. The Nechiporuk-Smith combo went 10-2 on the season, with one of those losses coming against D-II competition. Playing at No. 2 doubles, they did not face a single tiebreak all season. The first-year combo of Smiricinschi and Witter lost only match all season, in the MIAC championship, and faced no tiebreaks in any of their other matches playing from No. 3 doubles to finish with a 12-1 record while playing together. Both first-years played a couple doubles matches with other Knights, as Smiricinschi finished 16-1 overall in doubles and Witter went 15-1 overall.
Asfaw, Hose, and Nechiporuk took home All-MIAC recognition in both singles and doubles for the third consecutive year. Shteyman was all-conference in singles for the third straight year. This was the third consecutive All-MIAC doubles award for Smith, who twice previously garnered all-conference status in singles.
\Asfaw, Hose, and Nechiporuk were also named to the MIAC All-Playoff team.
Luciano Battaglini received his fourth MIAC Coach of the Year Award (also 2012, 2017, and 2023) and the second in a row. He has guided the Knights to a 17-0 record and a perfect 10-0 record in MIAC play. The Knights dropped only individual matches against Division III competition on the season.
The Knights will take on No. 43 Wisconsin-Whitewater on Thursday, May 9, in the first round of the NCAA Championships.
