Gorloks Season Ends In Setback to Hanover

For the fourth time in school history here Friday afternoon, Webster University played a match in the NCAA Division III Women's Tennis Tournament and in Friday's match, the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Champion Gorloks fell 5-0 to Hanover (Ind.) College in the first round of the Sewanee Regional held at the Bruton-Guerry Tennis Center on the campus of the University of the South (Sewanee). 

Webster, who was playing in its first NCAA Tournament match since 2015 when they fell in the second round of the Sewanee Regional to Emory University, ends their 2017-18 campaign with a 12-6 overall record. The 12 wins were the most for the program since posting a 15-10 record in 2016. 

Friday's match also was the final collegiate match for Webster's four-member senior class. The seniors on this year's Gorlok team were Monica Behrle (Atlanta, Ga./East Paulding), Robin Bolme (Smyrna, Tenn./Blackman), Jordan Struckman (O'Fallon, Mo./Francis Howell) and Jesse Steffens-Willis (St. Louis, Mo./Rockwood Summit). 

Three of the four seniors played in Friday's match against Hanover, who improved to 16-5 with the win and advanced to face top-seeded Emory in a second-round match on Saturday. Webster, who earned an at-large spot from Pool 'B' into this year's NCAA Tournament, picked up its lone NCAA Tournament win in school history against Hanover in 2015.

Against Hanover, who were, making their fourth all-time appearance in the NCAA Tournament this season and first since 2016, the Gorloks lost all three doubles matches to trail 3-0 heading into singles play.

In doubles action, Hanover's No. 3 team defeated Webster's No. 3 team of Bolme and freshman Adri Ventimiglia (St. Louis, Mo./Marquette Catholic), 8-1 and then Webster's No. 2 team of Steffens-Willis and freshman Maggie Federhofer(St. Louis, Mo./Lutheran South) fell 8-3. It was just the second time this season that Steffens-Willis and Federhofer had played together in doubles, while Bolme and Ventimiglia played doubles together for the first time this season against Hanover. 

Steffens-Willis' usual partner this season at the No. 3 doubles spot was Bolme, while Federhofer's usual partner at No. 2 doubles spot was junior Sara Rice (Mahomet, Ill./Mahomet-Seymour), but Rice was not with the team on Friday as she is currently studying aboard this summer. 

Webster's No. 1 team of Behrle and junior Madison Watts (Rogersville, Mo./Logan-Rogersville) battled Hanover's No. 1 team of Alana Feeley and Caroline Millard right up to the end before falling, 8-6. It was just the fourth loss this season at No. 1 doubles for Behrle and Watts as they finished with a 13-4 mark at No. 1 doubles and a 15-6 overall mark in doubles on the season. 

Meanwhile, in singles, Hanover only needed to win two of the six matches to earn the victory. The Panthers secured their first singles win at the No. 6 spot as Feeley defeated Ventimiglia, 6-1, 6-0. It was just the fifth singles match of the season for Ventimiglia, who closes the year with a 2-3 mark in singles.

Hanover would then seal the match at the No. 5 singles spot as Bolme fell to Hanover's Addison Laker, 6-0, 6-1. Bolme, who normally plays No. 6 singles, moved up to the No. 5 spot in the line-up due to Rice's absence. Friday's match was just the third of the year for Bolme at the No. 5 spot and it was also her first loss at the No. 5 spot as she was 2-0 on the season entering the match. 

The other four singles matches weren't completed once Hanover earned the win at No. 5, but the Gorloks had lost the first set in No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 singles, but Federhofer won her first set at No. 4 singles, 6-4. 

Behrle ends her collegiate career as the school's all-time leader in both singles and doubles wins as she posted a 69-22 record in singles and a 58-31 mark in doubles. In addition, Behrle was named the SLIAC Women's Tennis Player of the Year and was joined on the All-SLIAC First Team in singles by Watts, Steffens-Willis Rice, Federhofer, while Rice and Federhofer (No. 2 doubles) and Steffens-Willis and Bolme (No. 3 doubles) each earned Second-Team All-SLIAC honors. Watts and Behrle was named First-Team All-SLIAC selections in doubles. 

In addition, Struckman was named to the SLIAC's Women's Tennis All-Sportsmanship Team. 

The Gorloks, who are coached by Martha Davis-Goldstein, will return three of its top six players in singles and its No. 2 doubles team next season. The top returning singles players are Watts, Rice, and Federhofer, who combined to record a 31-21 record in singles this season as Watts went 9-10, while Rice was 13-4 and Federhofer posted a 9-7 mark. In doubles, Rice and Federhofer posted a 5-3 record together, including a 3-0 mark in SLIAC play.

STORY COURTESY OF WEBSTER UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION