Match Results

MASON, Ohio - The third-seeded Cardinal women's tennis team was defeated, 5-0, by top-seeded John Carroll in the championship match of the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Tournament on Saturday at the Lindner Family Tennis Center.

The Cardinals conclude their 2015-16 campaign with an overall record of 18-4, making it the fourth-straight season in which the team has recorded 12 or more wins. Head coach Pat Anderson, who is in her 19th season at the helm, is now just four wins shy of the 250-win mark for her career. 

The match was also the final one in the playing career of seniors Sammi Kruger, Adrien Leatherwood and Megan Locke. The trio combined over the last four years for a 68-19 overall record and a stellar 27-6 mark in OAC play.

Otterbein surrendered a 3-0 lead to JCU, which is also No. 19 in the latest regional rankings, after falling in all three doubles matches to begin the day. The closest margin for the Cardinals came in an 8-5 loss in second doubles for Kruger and sophomore Sophia Navas-Davis.

The Cards' No. 1 doubles tandem of Leatherwood and junior Rylie Markle, as well as third doubles duo of sophomore Emily Quill and freshman Sophie Allen, each recorded 8-3 losses in their respective matches.

Kruger battled in the top spot of singles for the Cards, eventually falling to the Blue Streaks' Lauren O'Malley (6-1, 6-0). With one win needed to clinch the match, JCU's Nicolette Bourlas proved victorious in third singles over Allen (6-0, 6-2). The other four singles competitions were unfinished with JCU clinching the match.

The win propels JCU to its first OAC Tournament title since 2006, earning the Blue Streaks an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament.