TEMPE, Ariz. – Following up their semifinal showing in the NCAA Division III Championship, Kenyon College claimed the No. 4 spot in the final Oracle Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Division III women’s national rankings.
That spot was the Ladies’ best since they were positioned at No. 2 following the 1997-98 season. Their current ranking also reflects a steady improvement over the last five years. In 2016-17, the Ladies were at No. 30. They improved eight spots in each of the next two seasons and then moved to No. 12 at the end of the 2019-20 season.
During their most recent campaign — which was shortened due to the COVID-10 pandemic — the Ladies whipped up an 11-1 record. They went 7-0 during the regular season, including a 5-0 mark in North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) competition. In the postseason, they defeated DePauw University to win the conference title and earn a berth in the NCAA Championship. Once in the national tournament, the Ladies marched all the way to the semifinal round before falling to No. 2 Wesleyan University.
The team’s No. 4 national ranking was backed by the No. 1 spot within the ITA’s Central Region rankings.
Additionally, both senior Erika Oku and junior Daria Beshentseva were listed in the ITA’s singles and doubles rankings. Oku, the Ladies’ top player, went 7-2 this past season and was listed as the ITA’s No. 10-ranked singles player in NCAA Division III as well as the No. 1-ranked singles player in the Central Region. Beshentseva produced a 6-2 singles mark and picked up a No. 47 national ranking and a No. 15 regional spot.
Paired together, Oku and Beshentseva registered a 6-2 doubles mark this past season. The ITA slotted the duo at No. 10 in its national rankings and No. 1 in the Central Region.
Lords, Platas remain nationally ranked
The final Oracle ITA Division III men’s national and regional rankings were released for the 2021 season. Although Kenyon College played a shortened season and had a slimmed-down roster due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it still managed to take positions among the nation’s best.
As a team, the Kenyon men were slotted at No. 35 in the ITA’s national rankings and No. 9 in the ITA’s Central Region rankings. The Lords’ 2021 season was narrowed down to a three-week span in which they played seven matches, including five against North Coast Athletic Conference East Division teams. Overall, the Lords went 3-4, and in NCAC play they went 2-3.
On an individual basis, sophomore Luis Andres Platas earned the No. 28 spot in the ITA’s national singles rankings and No. 8 in singles within the Central Region. Playing strictly at the No. 1 spot in the Lords’ lineup, Platas put together a 5-1 record.
Buckley collects IMLCA All-Region honor
The Intercollegiate Men’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IMLCA) released its annual NCAA Division III All-Region teams this week. Included among the selections was Kenyon College junior James Buckley.
The IMLCA organizes its selections across five regions and keeps those selections, in limited numbers, to a first team, a second team and honorable mentions.
Buckley was one of nine defensemen named as an honoree within Region 4 and one of three named an honorable mention. He played in just four games this past season but made a huge impact on the Kenyon defense, which ranked 15th in the NCAA in scoring defense (7.43 GAA).
Prior to collecting the All-Region award, Buckley was named a first-teamer on the 2021 All-North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Team. He became the second Lord to receive the All-Region award. The first was Patrick Shevelson, who claimed first-team honors when the IMLCA started the All-Region initiative in 2016.
During the 2021 campaign, Buckley and the Lords posted a 6-1 record and made an appearance in the NCAC Championship game.
Buckley’s career numbers over three years at Kenyon include 23 games played, 22 ground balls and seven caused turnovers. In that same three-year span, the Lords have a combined 22-8 record.
