Oct. 24, 2006

Erie, Pa. - The Mercyhurst College women's tennis team advanced to the GLIAC Team Championships for the eighth consecutive year, placing as the No. 4 seed in the eight team event. The Lakers will open play against No. 5 seed Lake Superior State Friday, October 27 in Midland, Mich. at the Midland Community Tennis Center, beginning at 10 a.m.

Defending champion Northwood University is the No. 1 seed and enters the tournament with a 40 match GLIAC win streak. The Timberwolves are seeking their fourth straight title. Grand Valley State is the No. 2 seed, while Ferris State is seeded third.

At 8-7 overall and 5-4 in conference, Mercyhurst features a young lineup with three freshmen, one sophomore, two juniors and a senior. Freshman Elizabeth Mullane leads Mercyhurst with an 11-4 singles record and 8-4 doubles mark. Another freshman, Chelsea Downing, sports a 9-7 singles record. Sophomore Jaclyn McLean has been a solid performer all season with an 11-5 record in singles and 8-7 record in doubles.

Freshman singles player Meghan Raynor is 7-9, while senior captain Jamie Sutyak is 7-9 at the No. 2 singles spot. Junior Jenn Daly, 7-10 at No. 1 singles, teams with doubles specialist Christine Mersch at the top of the lineup.

Mercyhurst and Lake Superior have a history of tight and exciting matches. Their last five matches have all ended at 5-4 with Mercyhurst prevailing a month ago at home and Lake Superior taking the 'Hurst twice last year.

The second round of play will begin Friday at 1 p.m., with all final matches scheduled for Saturday at 10 am. The top eight teams, decided by the dual match season, qualify for the conference championships. Rounding out the field is No. 6 seed Michigan Tech, No. 7 seed Wayne State and No. 8 seed Saginaw Valley State.