By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications, (503) 370-6110

WALLA WALLA, Wash. -- Willamette University women's tennis players won five of six play-in matches on Friday, Sept. 22 to earn berths into the main singles draw and the main doubles draw at the ITA Northwest Regional Championships. The Bearcats were victorious in all for of their singles matches and in one of two doubles matches.

Winners of the play-in matches advanced into the main draws, which were set to begin on Saturday, Sept. 23 and continue through Monday, Sept. 23 at Whitman College.

The four Bearcats who won play-in matches in singles were Alyssa Oberg (So., Roseville, CA/Oakmont HS), Sylvia Marr (Fr., Grants Pass, OR/Hidden Valley HS), Allie DiPasquale (Jr., Seattle, WA/Seattle Academy) and Sarah Dean (Fr., Boise, ID/Timberline HS).

Oberg moved past Emma Lund of Pacific Lutheran University when Lund defaulted at the start of the second set. Oberg won the first set, 6-2. Marr outlasted Taylor Stokes of PLU, 7-6, 6-4. DiPasquale won 6-2 in the first set against Danielle Brown of George Fox University, and then edged Brown in a tie-breaker in the second set, 7-6 (9-7). Dean rolled through both sets for a 6-1, 6-1 triumph over Madeline Ball of Whitworth.

Willamette was represented by two teams in play-in matches in doubles. The teams for the Bearcats were DiPasquale and Marr as well as Oberg and Dean. Oberg and Dean defeated Emily Sandquist and Halle Berg from Whitworth, 8-5. DiPasquale and Marr lost to Emily Brink and Taylor Morris of George Fox, 8-6.