JERSEY CITY, N.J. — For the second consecutive season, the New Jersey City University women's tennis team earned a New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Championship semifinal round victory. The Gothic Knights, seeded #2 in the 2023 NJAC Championship Tournament, hosted #3 Stockton University at the Lincoln Park Tennis Center on Wednesday afternoon, April 26, and quickly dispatched the Ospreys, 5-2.
Playing to clinch in postseason play, NJCU (11-5) got ahead of Stockton (12-5) early by winning two of the three doubles matches. Sophomore
Vanshita Malhotra (Barwala, India/DAV Model School) and freshman
Sophia Jurina (Munich, Germany/Carl-Spitzweg-Gymnasium) teamed up at second singles and earned the first win of the day, 8-2. Then, after dropping third doubles, the Gothic Knights took a 2-1 lead heading into singles thanks to an 8-3 win at first doubles to close it out from seniors
Giada Zorzan (Milan, Italy/Liceo dello Sport Marco Pantani) and
Eliza Clamor (Auckland, New Zealand/Rangitoto College).
After dropping sixth singles, pushing the score to even at 2-2 overall, sophomore
Sara Zorzan (Milan, Italy/Liceo Falcone Borsellino) put NJCU ahead once again at 3-2 with a smooth, 6-0, 6-1, win at fifth singles. Malhotra was next finish at third singles, winner her match, 6-3, 6-2, to put the Gothic Knights up 4-2 and just one win away from clinching their second straight NJAC Championship Match berth. It came down to first singles and
Giada Zorzan (Milan, Italy/Liceo dello Sport Marco Pantani) clinched the team victory, winning, 6-2, 6-3, to end the match.
NJCU, after falling to Stockton, 6-1, back in April of 2021 — the first meeting between the two programs in history — close out their run with four consecutive wins over the Ospreys, twice in the each of the last two seasons.
Up Next:
The Gothic Knights look to get over the hump as they take on top-seeded The College of New Jersey —rain or shine — on Saturday, April 29, at 12:00 p.m. in Ewing, N.J. NJCU is in search of its first win over the NJAC regular-season champs in what will be their fifth and final meeting all-time.
