Contact: Alex Mielcarz, Athletics Communication Graduate Assistant, ajmielcarz@notctrl.edu
ORLANDO, Fla. (March 6, 2026) – The North Central College women's tennis team fell to 11-1 in duals tonight after getting swept by No. 11 Carnegie Mellon University to open its southern swing.
The loss was the first of the season for the Cardinals, as they had won the first 11 duals of the season, including a sweep of the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin regular season in the fall.
Carnegie Mellon (11-0) swept the three doubles matches. Kensington Payne and Abigail Penados in the top spot of the doubles lineup, won the most games for the Cardinals in the doubles portion of the night, falling in their match 6-3.
North Central's (11-1) struggles continued in singles. Penados dropped her match 6-2, 6-1, and Payne narrowly avoided a clean sweep against her opponent, winning a game in the second set (6-0, 6-1).
Liveta Ezerskis won the most games on the night in singles for North Central (4), falling in her contest 6-2, 6-2. Kate Herlihy won a pair of games in the opening set of her contest, losing 6-2, 6-0, while Meghan McSweeny won three games in her match, falling 6-2, 6-1.
North Central did not win a single set in doubles or singles.
The Cardinals are off on Saturday but continue action in sunny Florida on Sunday morning, taking on Dickinson College at 8:30 a.m. EST.
