WILKES-BARRE – The Wilkes University women's tennis squad returns to the courts after a shortened 2019-2020 campaign that saw them finish 4-1 with five singles and one doubles champion in the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Individual Championships.  Last year's squad also won a pair of championships at the ITA Southeast Regionals.  Victor Terranova enters his third season with the women's tennis program.
 
When asked about his expectations for the season, Terranova said his "expectations are to provide the student-athletes with the best possible experience.  My main concern is the culture of the program and how the student athletes appreciate this time that they have been given together.  We want to increase our tennis knowledge, increase our skill sets, increase our fitness levels and increase our program culture.  Having the players remember there is more to college tennis than just competing is something very powerful as they approach their time to graduate and enter the real world."
 
The Colonels squad this year is made up of four upperclassmen and three first years.  Sarah Malone (Williamsport, PA/Loyalsock) and Dagney Markle (New Oxford, PA/New Oxford) are the two seniors on the squad, while Alexa Cieri (Matawan, NJ/St. John Vianney) and Dasha Yakhnis (Verona, NJ/Verona) represent the two junior Colonels.  Markle won the No. 5 singles championship at the MAC Individual Championships, while Malone earned the No. 7 championship.  Both seniors have won at least one championship at the MAC Individual Championships in their first three years with the Colonels.
 
"I think this is a great group of women that have been excited to spend a lot of time with one another where their main priority has been to focus on their relationships with their teammates on and off the court," said Terranova. "They are ready to leave their stamp on the program and turn us in a direction that could have lasting results. "
 
Cieri posted an impressive 2019-2020 season, winning an E Singles and a C Doubles (paired with Laura Zielinski (Mt. Wolf, PA/Northeastern)) championship at the ITA Southeast Regionals.  She was the second Colonel to win a singles title at the event, and part of the first-ever doubles pair to win that event.  Yakhnis earned the No. 3 singles title at the MAC Individual Championships, and teamed up with Francesca Varela-Seri (Stewartsville, NJ/Phillipsburg) to capture a No. 1 doubles title at the event as well.
 
Terranova has high hopes for his first-year players. "I think we have a great group of newcomers on the team that have enhanced the returners experience.  We are really beginning to have championship level culture and this group of freshmen on the team are buying into a system and culture that will allow for us to take huge steps forward."  He continued by saying, "It's pretty amazing the way they hold upperclassman accountable for their actions but also have fit right into the returners mold."

The Colonels introduce three first-year players to the squad this season.  Cassidy Greenman (Glen Gardner, NJ/Voorhees), Zoe Klein (Southbury, CT/Pomperaug), and Kaitlyn O'Neil (Jim Thorpe, PA/Jim Thorpe) are all set to contribute in their first season with the Navy and Gold.
 
"Arcadia is led by a seasoned coach which knows what it takes to do things in a professional manner.  Arcadia will be a class act and one that we need to be prepared for," said Terranova when asked about their schedule for the upcoming season.  "Stevens women have done a fantastic job of building their program over the past five years and will be the front runner in my opinion.  We will need to play flawless tennis and have some luck on our side to finish in the top spot."
 
The Colonels start their season with a showdown with city rival King's College, scheduled for this upcoming Saturday at noon.  York College is scheduled to visit the Ralston Athletic Complex on April 2nd, while the Colonels officially open their MAC Freedom slate with a road trip out to Lycoming College on April 10th.  Both matches are scheduled to start at noon.

Quarterfinal play in the MAC Freedom Team Championship will be played on May 4th followed by the Semifinals on May 6th. The Final is set to be held on May 8th with the winner receiving the MAC Freedom automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament. Wilkes is looking for its 14th consecutive conference championship and NCAA Tournament appearance, a streak that runs from 2007-2019.