IVCC walks away with Region 4 title, finishes 3rd at nationals

OGLESBY, ILL. - With very little competition against them, Illinois Valley Community College was crowned the 2021 Region 4 Division III Women's Tennis Champions on October 9-10. The Eagles won every singles and doubles flight to earn nine points and secure their second team title in three years, with no championship tournament held in between due to the Covid-19 Pandemic. Karissa Etzenbach of IVCC was named the Region 4 Player of the Year, and Illinois Valley's Julie Milota was awarded the Region 4 Coach of the Year.

Etzenbach won the Flight 1 Singles title with a 6-0, 6-0 victory over Kelly Smith of the College of DuPage. Haley Schmitz defeated COD's Litzy Reyes by a 6-0, 6-1 tally to claim the Flight 2 Singles championship. IVCC's Olivia Woods, Amethyst Ernat, Brianna Strehl, and Clara Ferrari all won their respective singles flights via forfeit.

In doubles, Etzenbach & Ernat combined to win a 6-0, 6-0 match over Smith & Reyes in the Flight 1 championship, while the other two flights were awarded to the duos of Strehl & Woods and Ferrari & Schmitz via forfeit.

2021 Region 4 Division III Women's Tennis Championship Final Results

Illinois Valley Community College earned an automatic bid to the 2021 NJCAA Division III Women's Tennis Championships in Peachtree, Georgia, on October 29-30, 2021. The Eagles would rack up 17 points and finish third in the nation, just two points behind runners-up Suffolk County Community College. Oxford-Emory was the national title with 33 points. Woods (Flight 3) and Ferrari (Flight 6) both reached the championship match of their respective flights, while Ernat captured the Consolation championship in Flight 4. The highlight of the weekend came when Strehl & Woods teamed up for a thrilling 7-6 (10), 4-6, 7-6 (2) in the Flight 2 Doubles finale to give IVCC a championship.

First Team (Singles)
First Flight
Karissa Etzenbach - Illinois Valley Community College

Second Flight
Haley Schmitz - Illinois Valley Community College

Third Flight
Olivia Woods - Illinois Valley Community College
 
Fourth Flight
Amethyst Ernat - Illinois Valley Community College

Fifth Flight
Brianna Strehl - Illinois Valley Community College

Sixth Flight
Clara Ferrari - Illinois Valley Community College

First Team (Doubles)
First Flight
Amethyst Ernat & Karissa Etzenbach - Illinois Valley Community College

Second Flight
Brianna Strehl& Olivia Woods - Illinois Valley Community College

Third Flight
Clara Ferrari & Haley Schmitz - Illinois Valley Community College

Second Team (Singles)
First Flight
Kelly Smith - College of DuPage

Second Flight
Litzy Reyes - College of DuPage

Second Team (Doubles)
First Flight
Kelly Smith & Litzy Reyes - College of DuPage

Player of the Year
Karissa Etzenbach - Illinois Valley Community College

Coach of the Year
Julie Milota - Illinois Valley Community College