By Will Coffman, Local News Editor

Xavier women’s tennis captured their fifth-straight Big East Conference title on April 20 after a 4-0 win against the Villanova Wildcats. 

The Big East Tournament, played at Cayce Tennis & Fitness Club in Cayce, S.C., saw the second-seeded Musketeers beat the four-seeded Wildcats, to finish the season 14-8 overall going into NCAA tournament play. Junior Emily Flowers was recognized individually by the Big East, earning Most Outstanding Honors after her 3-0 performance in the tournament.

The fifth straight victory for the Musketeers in the Big East Tournament gives the program six conference tournament titles. The Musketeers went 5-1 against Big East opponents for the season, with the team’s only Big East loss coming from its March 6 match against University of Connecticut in March, where they lost 3-4. The teams’ strengths that led to this success against Big East opponents were on full display in its Easter Sunday victory which clinched the Big East’s NCAA tournament bid for the Musketeers.

With the NCAA tournament the next stop for the team, Xavier is getting hot at the right time, as the Musketeers Big East title gives them their ninth win in a row, which is a strong indicator that this team is ready for tournament play.

First-year Natalie Smitek, an accounting major who joined the team as a four-star recruit, spoke about joining a program experiencing a period of success.

 “It’s a great feeling. It feels awesome to be able to keep contributing to such an awesome program,” Smitek said.

As for the atmosphere of the locker room, Smitek left no doubt the team chemistry is just as strong as its performance on the court. 

“My favorite thing about the team is all of the girls on it. Everyone is so supportive and wants the best for you. We all want to win for each other,” Smitek said.

The Musketeers will face the Vanderbilt Commodores in the opening round of the NCAA tournament. The Commodores are 19-6 overall, 11-4 in SEC play and promise the Musketeers a tough opening test.

The team has already shown they are ready to compete in the postseason, and it is clear they can compete with the best. The match against the Commodores will not be easy though, and Smitek confirmed postseason play comes with higher levels of stress than a typical regular season match.

“There’s added pressure. In the regular season, if you lose it sucks but it’s not a huge deal. Knowing you’ll be done if you lose for sure raises the pressure,”  Smitek said.

The Musketeers take on Vanderbilt on May 2 at 3 p.m. in the opening round of the NCAA Championships.