Moraine Valley women's tennis finish another impressive season

They say history repeats itself, and the Cyclones were more than happy to oblige. After facing tough competition, the team qualified for nationals for their fifth straight year after placing second in the NJCAA Region IV tournament (Oct. 9-10).

Not only did the Cyclones qualify for nationals, but they also completed a regular season with a second consecutive undefeated record hallmarked by another Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference championship.

Being a young crew, only one player had previously competed in regionals. They started off the tournament with five (out of nine possible) first seeds for the individual draws. There were eight teams competing. For most of the tournament, Moraine Valley held the top spot even though nearly every player battled at least one major injury. As each Cyclone advanced, playing up to four matches each day, the injuries ultimately caught up. Despite the battered troops, the Cyclones finished runners-up and qualified for the NJCAA Division I Women’s Tennis National Tournament.

As they did all season, Alexis Kasper (4th singles), Elizabeth Doory (5th singles), and Bre Vollan (6th singles) maintained perfection, each taking first in their respective flights. Agnieszka Szudy (3rd singles) and Doory/Vollan (3rd doubles) came in third place, respectively. At No. 1 singles, Haley Reiher came in fourth. For their performance, Kasper, Doory and Vollan were named to the All-Region team to complement their All-Conference team designation. Second doubles team Szudy/Kasper also were All-Conference. Coach Nicole Selvaggio was named Skyway Coach of the Year for the second straight season.

“My accolades are a testament to the amount of hard work our women have put forth all season. I cannot be more humbled, as well as happy, to bring another conference championship trophy to Moraine Valley,” Selvaggio said.

Having the added stress of returning just one player from last year, Selvaggio had to work with a new team that came together to keep the winning tradition alive at Moraine Valley.

“I am extremely proud of this young group. Looking back at the recruiting process for this season, I started with a squad of zero. Everyone on the team is a freshman except for Szudy, whom I signed again in late summer. It’s highly challenging to turn a group of nearly all freshmen into national contenders and conference champions, but this group did it. What they lacked in experience, they more than made up for in heart and grit,” Selvaggio said. “Our program is consistent. We are a force to be reckoned with. I think our success over the past five years has proven this. For us to be in the top two in the region every year for the past five years is a pretty extraordinary feat. None of the other colleges in our state can say this.”