EWING, N.J. (April 27, 2022) – The Rutgers University-Camden women's tennis team qualified for the New Jersey Athletic Conference playoffs on Saturday as the fourth seed in the four-team event.
 
Unfortunately for the Scarlet Raptors, that meant that they had to visit top-seeded The College of New Jersey for the NJAC semifinals here Wednesday. That matchup went the same as any other playoff matchup that the Lions have been involved with in the history of the NJAC as top-seeded TCNJ eliminated Rutgers-Camden, 5-0, in a post-season match that was stopped after a victory was clinched.
 
TCNJ, which has won every NJAC championship dating back to the 1982-83 season, improves to 15-2. The Scarlet Raptors, who were defeated by the Lions, 9-0, in Ewing on April 2, close their season with a 13-5 record.
 
Tournament bracket
 
TCNJ will host second-seeded New Jersey City University at 12 p.m. Saturday for the NJAC title, with an automatic trip to the NCAA Tournament on the line. NJCU eliminated third-seeded Stockton University, 5-0, in the other Wednesday semifinal match.
 
The Lions were over halfway to the title after sweeping the three doubles matches. At first doubles, the Raptors' top team of sophomore Sarah Ahrens and senior Tiffany Trivers lost an 8-2 decision. Rutgers-Camden's second doubles team (sophomore Samantha Hoban and junior Laurel DiStefano) and third doubles team (seniors Morgan Dempsey and LeAnne Hall) both lost, 8-1.
 
Needing only two more wins to wrap up the match, the first two singles matches completed happened to be at the first and second spots. Ahrens lost at the top flight, 6-0, 6-0, and Hoban was defeated by the same score at second singles.
 
In the matches that went unfinished, Trivers was losing at third singles, 6-0, 5-0. DeStefano was behind at fourth singles, 6-2, 1-1 and Hall was behind in the fifth spot, 6-0, 5-0. Dempsey trailed at sixth singles, 6-1, 3-0, when that match was called.
 
With their 13 wins this season, the Scarlet Raptors tied the program record set by the 1987 team, which went 13-3.
 
Among the program's single-season records, Hoban finished with 14 singles victories, the second-highest total in program history. The record of 16 was set by Amanda Hickman in the 2012-13 season.
 
For doubles victories, Ahrens set a program mark with 15, while Trivers, Dempsey and Hall all finished with 14. Ahrens, who was named to the All-NJAC First Team for singles earlier in the day, notched 14 of those doubles victories teamed with Trivers, while Hall and Dempsey were partners for all of their doubles wins. Those 14 victories with the same partner set a program record for both of those doubles teams.
 
Ahrens collected 27 combined wins this year, tying the overall program single-season mark set by Hickman in 2012-13.
 
As far as career records, Trivers leaves with 33 singles wins, second only to Hickman's 44 (2012-16). Hall was right behind her with 30.
 
In doubles, Hall's 34 career wins tied Hickman's school mark, while Trivers finished with 33. Hall and Dempsey also set a career mark with 15 wins as doubles partners, with 14 of them coming this year.
 
While Hickman holds the career mark with 78 overall wins, the next three spots are occupied by Trivers (66), Hall (64) and Dempsey (49).