CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – Milligan University's women's tennis squad began competition at the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) Tennis Championships in Chattanooga, Tenn. at the Champions Club Tennis Complex. As the No. 5 seed in the tourney, the Lady Buffs were tasked with toppling the No. 4-seeded Royals of Johnson University (Tenn.). They did just that, taking home four singles wins to seal a 4-2 win and an advancement to the Semifinal round.
BOX SCORE
The Lady Buffs fell two matches to one in the doubles competition, as
Parker White and
Lauren Wimmer teamed up to win the No. 2 matchup, but
Melissa Duarte and
Madison Berry dropped the No. 1 tilt, 6-4, and
Tara Stewart and
Laurel Rich lost 6-3 in the No. 3 matchup.
Trailing 1-0 after doubles, Milligan fell in just one singles match, the No. 1 battle. Duarte fell 6-0, 6-4 to start things. From there, Stewart managed a three-set win in the No. 2 tilt. She took set one 6-4, before falling 7-5 to even the score. Then, she dominated the final set, winning 6-1 to grab a point for Milligan. Berry also went three sets in the third match. She won 6-0 to start but then fell 6-4. She then returned to her dominant ways in the third, winning 6-1. White's 6-2, 7-6 (7-3) win in the No. 5 matchup was one of two straight-set wins. Rich came through with a 6-3, 6-1 triumph to clinch the victory, 4-2. Wimmer was the only singles player to not finish their match, as she led 2-6, 6-3, 3-2 in the third set.
After their match, the AAC announced the winners of the End-of-Year awards for 2025-26, The five players listed below were selected to the All-Academic Team:
Lee Anne Endler
Trinity Fox
Laurel Rich
Tara Stewart
Lauren Wimmer
Â
The Buffs' Champion of Character for the campaign was
Laurel Rich.
With the triumph, the Buffaloes will now be up against the toughest competition possible in the tourney, as the top-seeded Bulldogs of Tennessee Wesleyan will meet them in the Semifinal round on Tuesday, April 21 at 10 a.m.
Â
