Women's tennis closes regular season, prepares for IIAC AQ Tournament

INDIANOLA, Iowa - The Simpson women's tennis team closed the 2015-16 regular season Saturday but looks forward to an appearance in the first round of the Iowa Conference Automatic Qualifier Tournament, which begins Friday, April 29 in Cedar Rapids.

The Storm (5-15, 3-4) closed the spring season on a nine-match losing streak, but earned the No. 5 seed in the tournament thanks to a 3-4 mark in conference play this fall. Simpson will play No. 4 seed Wartburg on Friday at 4 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Tennis Center.

The Knights (8-14, 4-3) beat Simpson twice this season, 9-0 on Oct. 3 and 6-3 on April 2. The winner of Friday's opening round match advances to play top-seeded Coe on Saturday at 9 a.m.

Simpson is led by freshman Liz Nimmo's eight singles wins on the year, followed by Megan Bradley's seven. The doubles team of Cassidy Bierbrodt and Michelle Hartmann has produced a team-best 6-4 record while Kelli Ehrhardt and Kelli Greiner are 5-6.

The tournament champion receives the Iowa Conference's automatic berth in the 2016 NCAA Division III Women's Tennis Championships. The first three rounds begin on May 13 and run through May 15. The 2016 Championships are being hosted by Kalamazoo College on May 23-28.

Women's AQ Tournament Schedule
Friday, April 29
4:00 p.m. - No. 6 Loras vs. No. 3 Central at Clark Racquet Center (Coe College)
4:00 p.m. - No. 5 Simpson vs. No. 4 Wartburg at Veterans Memorial Tennis Center

Saturday, April 30
9:00 a.m. - No. 1 Coe vs. Wartburg/Simpson winner at Clark Racquet Center
9:00 a.m. - No. 2 Luther vs. Central/Loras winner at Veterans Memorial Tennis Center
1:30 p.m. (or 1:15 after last semifinal finishes, whichever is later) - Championship Match at Clark Racquet Center