CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – A spot in the 2023 NCAA Division III Women’s Tennis Tournament is on the line this week as the American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) Women’s Tennis AQ Tournament commences today, Tuesday, April 18. The six-team tournament will see the higher seed host throughout with the quarterfinals today, semifinals on Thursday, April 20, and championship on Saturday, April 22.
 
In Lincoln, Nebraska, No. 3-seed Nebraska Wesleyan Prairie Wolves (8-3, 6-2 A-R-C) will play host to the No. 6-seed Central College Dutch (6-12, 3-5 A-R-C). The two teams met back on September 9, 2022 with the Prairie Wolves securing a 7-2 win over the Dutch. Nebraska Wesleyan tallied wins in four singles matches (No. 1, 3, 4, 5) and all three doubles matches. The Prairie Wolves are guided by four-time singles and two-time doubles All-Conference performer, Brooke Sailer. The other key performer for the Prairie Wolves is sophomore Anna Burt who was a 2022 Honorable Mention performer. Jen Larson will lead the Dutch as she picked up Honorable Mention honors in the fall of 2022. The match at the Lincoln Sports Foundation Sports Complex in Lincoln, Nebraska is slated for 4:00 p.m. The winner will face the No. 2-seed Coe College Kohawks in the semifinals on the campus of Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa on Thursday, April 20.
 
In the second opening round match, the No. 5-seed Loras College Duhawks (13-6, 4-4 A-R-C) will travel to Waverly, Iowa to square off with the No. 4-seed Wartburg College Knights (13-10, 5-3 A-R-C). The two teams met back on September 27, 2022 in Dubuque. The Knights came away with a 5-4 victory, winning two doubles matches (No. 2 and 3) and three singles matches (No. 1, 3, 5). The Knights are guided by two-time All-Conference singles and doubles performer Meadow LaDuke. Joining her is her doubles partner, Natalie Kaiser who has picked up All-Conference honors in both singles and doubles. Georgia Nissen earned All-Conference doubles honor this fall and will continue her season today during the AQ tournament. For the Duhawks, they are led by Lauren Diiulio and Isabel Schwabe, both picking up All-Conference honors in the fall. Diiulio is now a two-time singles and doubles All-Conference performer and Schwabe is earning her first accolade in both singles and doubles. The other key performers for Loras are Sara Backus and Dorothy Deans, both of whom earned Honorable Mention honors this year. Additionally, Backus was named a 2020 Honorable Mention performer. Match time is set for a 4:00 p.m. start at Meirink Family Tennis Facility on the campus of Wartburg College. The winner will advance to face the top-seeded Luther Norse in the semifinal round in Decorah, Iowa on Thursday, April 20.
 
Three-time defending AQ tournament champions, the Luther College Norse (17-10, 8-0 A-R-C), enter this year’s tournament as the top-seed. The Norse have nine AQ tournament championship titles in program history with the tournament beginning in the 2002-03 season. The Norse had a perfect 8-0 conference record in the fall, defeating Wartburg College 7-2 on October 11^th to claim the regular season title. Overall, Luther holds a record of RECORD. Luther saw four women named singles All-Conference performers this season: junior Sofia Sackett, and sophomores Renata Martinez, Julia Moreno, and Montse Ramirez-Mainou. On the doubles side, Martinez, Moreno, and Sackett also picked up honors. Joining those three is senior Lexi Hastings to earn All-Conference honors. Also taking the court for the Norse are Honorable Mention performers, Riley O’Donnell and Natalia Smith. The Norse will face the winner of Loras and Wartburg on Thursday, April 20 in Decorah, Iowa. Luther defeated both Loras (9-0) and Wartburg (7-2) in the fall.
 
Second-seeded Coe College Kohawks (12-7, 7-1 A-R-C), who finished 7-1 in A-R-C matches, is set to face the winner of Central and Nebraska Wesleyan in Cedar Rapids on Thursday, April 20 after receiving a first-round bye. The Kohawks played Central back on September 3, sneaking away with a 5-4 victory in Pella. Against the Prairie Wolves on September 17 in Cedar Rapids, Coe secured a 6-3 victory on their home courts. Leading the way for the Kohawks is sophomore Maddie Schultz who earned her second-straight conference MVP honors after going undefeated in A-R-C action. Teammate Jania Johnson earned All-Conference honors after per performances in doubles play this past fall. Joining these two and leading the charge for the Kohawks is senior Emma Lassen who earned Honorable Mention accolades in the fall.
 
The tournament champion receives the league’s automatic berth to the 2023 NCAA Division III Women’s Tennis Tournament. The first, second, and third rounds will take place on campus with the final site being at the USTA National Campus (Collegiate Center) in Orlando, Florida May 14-22, 2023.