The Wichita State women’s tennis team made program history at the American Conference Championship but fell short of a title.

A 4-2 loss in Sunday’s championship match against the tournament’s No. 3 seed Rice closed the door for the top-seeded Shockers’ first conference title since joining the American. 

Along the way, WSU took down No. 8 seed UAB and No. 4 seed Tulsa but ultimately were defeated in the championship match. 

“We were here to win it, but came up just a bit short,” head coach Jacob Eddins said.

The Shockers’ conference title match appearance was their first since the 2016-17 season, when they won the Missouri Valley Conference for the ninth consecutive year. Eddins capped his debut season with 19 consecutive wins before Sunday’s loss, setting a program record.

Despite the loss, Wichita State has put itself in prime position for an NCAA tournament appearance, ranked No. 28 in the nation heading into the match. 

Eddins is confident in the team’s postseason future. 

“We are an at-large team, and in another week, our name will be called in the selection show, and we will get in as an at-large team,” he said. 

The national tournament consists of a 64-team field, with 32 automatic qualifiers (teams that won their conference championship) and 32 at-large teams, selected based on rankings.  

The NCAA selection show is scheduled at 4:30 p.m. Monday, April 27, with the first round beginning either Friday, May 1 or Saturday, May 2. 

Quarterfinals: [1] WSU vs. [8] UAB 

WSU took down UAB in a quarterfinal sweep Friday morning, marking its second win in the American Conference quarterfinals since joining ahead of the 2017-18 season. 

Seniors Anne Knuettel and Vichitraporn Vimuktananda started the day off strong for the Shockers, with a 6-1 victory on court three in doubles play. They were followed by No. 34-ranked Xin Tong Wang and Giorgia Roselli, winning 6-4 on court one, securing the doubles point. 

The point marked the Shockers’ 18th of the season. 

Seniors Theodora Chantava and Kristina Kudryavtseva were left unfinished on court two, down 5-4. 

Wang started singles off for the Shockers with a 6-2, 6-0 victory on court one, putting them up 2-0. Kudryavtseva followed suit on court five, who earned a 6-2, 6-1 win of her own, giving WSU a 3-0 lead.

Tatyana Nikolenko’s 6-4, 6-3 victory on court six secured the sweep and advancement to the semifinals, setting up a rematch against Tulsa, who they played on April 11. 

The win marked the Shockers’ 18th in a row, setting a program record. 

“It means a lot to the group and the program overall. This team has put in the work and really deserves to set a record like that,” Eddins said. 

Semifinals: [1] WSU vs. [4] Tulsa

Wichita State carried its momentum during a 4-0 sweep of Tulsa, continuing the winning streak and all but solidifying a case for an NCAA tournament berth.  

Chantava and Kudryavtseva finished first in doubles, setting the tone with a 6-3 victory. Wang and Roselli secured the doubles point dominantly, winning 6-1, giving the Shockers an early advantage. 

WSU never looked back, winning without dropping a single court — even leading in all courts before they were left unfinished. 

No. 92-ranked Chantava opened up singles play with a strong 6-1, 6-2 showing, giving WSU a 2-0 lead. Soon after, Roselli delivered another point for the Shockers with a 6-3, 6-4 victory on court No. 2. Wang finished off the sweep with a 6-1, 6-4 victory, advancing the Shockers to the American Conference championship.

The Shockers rewrote the record book again with their 19th straight win. 

Experience was a key piece that coach Jacob Eddins said guided the team. 

“We’ve got a really experienced and veteran group,” he said. “In a lot of these close moments, they can lean on past experiences in college matches, and that’s really helped them continue to grow and handle those situations better each time.” 

The victory set up a championship match with Rice.

Championship: [1] WSU vs. [3] Rice

Chantava and Kudryavtseva started off doubles right for Wichita State, with a 6-2 victory on court two to begin Sunday’s title match against the Owls. 

Knuettel and Vimuktananda went down 5-4 but rallied back and went the distance for a 7-6 victory to secure the doubles point yet again for the Shockers. 

Wang and Roselli also found themselves down 5-4 at the same time as Knuettel and Vimuktananda, but ultimately fell 6-4. 

Wang got revenge in her singles match, starting WSU’s day off hot with a 6-3, 6-0 victory, giving the top-seeded Shockers an early 2-0 advantage.

Vimuktananda wasn’t able to carry her momentum into singles, however, and fell with a pair of 6-2 losses. Nikolenko fell as well, losing court six, 7-5, 6-3, and the Shockers’ 2-0 lead had been erased. 

Chantava went down next, losing 6-3, 6-3, 6-3, after claiming the second set as Rice took a 3-2 lead.

WSU ultimately fell to Rice when Roselli lost on court No. 2 against the Owls’ Divna Ratkovic for the Conference Championship in three sets. 

Rice broke WSU’s 19-match win streak — its first defeat since Jan. 24.