Two-Time Defending National Champion CMS Women's Tennis Picked First in Preseason Poll

CLAREMONT, Calif. - The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps women's tennis team, winners of back-to-back national championships in 2022 and 2023, is favored to make it three straight, as it was picked No. 1 in Division III in a preseason poll from the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, the organization announced this week.

CMS was picked No. 1 in the preseason poll, followed by Chicago in second, Pomona-Pitzer in third, Middlebury in fourth and Wesleyan in fifth. Emory, Amherst, Johns Hopkins, Williams and MIT round out the top 10. 

The Athenas have everyone back from the lineup that won the national championship, and added three new first-years and one transfer to bolster their depth. Alisha Chulani played No. 1 singles and No. 1 doubles last year, earning All-America honors in both, and is expected to play near the top of the ladder again. Audrey Yoon played No. 2 singles and also came through with All-America honors by advancing in the NCAA Division III singles championship. 

Lindsay Eisenman played No. 6 last year, but earned All-America honors already this year by winning the ITA West Singles Championship, defeating Yoon in the final, and advancing to the national championship match at the ITA Cup. Katherine Wurster won the ITA West Regional last year and is returning from an All-America season as well. 

Ella Brissett, who clinched the NCAA Division III Championship with a singles win in 2022, played No. 3 singles a year ago, while Sena Selby played at No. 4 and closed out the year with a dominant effort in the national championship match (6-0, 6-3). Nikolina Batoshvili played No. 5 singles and clinched the national title in 2023, and has been an All-American at No. 1 doubles with Chulani in each of the last two seasons. 

Arushi Malik is entering her junior season to add to the veteran nucleus for CMS, while junior Lily Walther transfers in with Division I experience having played previously at Tulane. First-years Jade Haller, Anna Petrescu and Muduo Zhou will also look to crack a loaded line-up this year.

CMS opens up its fall schedule on Saturday, Feb. 10, when it hosts UC San Diego at 12 p.m. The Athenas also have home matches with Point Loma, Westcliff and Brandeis before heading to the ITA National Indoors on March 1-3, opening up ahainst Carnegie Mellon on Friday, March 1.