Catherine Allen Named SCIAC Women's Tennis Athlete of the Week

CLAREMONT, Calif. - Junior Catherine Allen was named the SCIAC Women's Tennis Athlete of the Week for events through Sunday, March 3, the league office announced today.

Allen earned the award after going undefeated at No. 1 singles and doubles at the ITA Indoor Nationals with a 5-0 record against three teams that were ranked in the top 13 in the nation. 

In the quarterfinals against No. 13 Washington University, Allen breezed to a 6-0, 6-1 at No. 1 singles, after taking an 8-3 win in doubles with sophomore Caroline Cox.  In the semis on Saturday, she battled to a tiebreaker in the first set with Marjorie Antohi of Chicago, the No. 24 ranked singles player in the nation, before coming away with a 7-6, 6-0 win. 

On Sunday in the ITA Indoor Championship against Emory, Allen ended up with an unfinished match (after Emory clinched the team win 5-3), but served notice that she will be on the short list of candidates for the NCAA Division III Singles Championship in May. While matching up against Ysabel Gonzalez-Rico, the No. 1 ranked singles player in the nation, Allen took the first set 6-3 and had a chance to take a straight-set win when the second set went to a tiebreaker, before Gonzalez-Rico was able to take the breaker for a 7-6 win and prolong the match, which never concluded. 

Allen becomes the second CMS women's tennis player to earn the SCIAC Women's Tennis Athlete of the Week this season, joining sophomore Rebecca Berger, who earned it on Feb. 11 after accounting for the deciding point in a 4-3 road win over UC San Diego. 

CMS will be back in action this weekend for a rare tripleheader on Sunday, facing Hardin-Simmons at 9 a.m., Haverford at 12 noon, and Quinnipiac at 3 p.m.