MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – The Skidmore College women's tennis team saw its NCAA Tournament run end in the Second Round, as the Thoroughbreds fell to Brandeis 5-0, at the Wesleyan Tennis Courts Saturday afternoon.
 
Skidmore, ranked 16^th in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) national rankings, sees its season end at 14-7. Brandeis, ranked eighth nationally, improves to 14-7 and will face host fourth-ranked Wesleyan for the regional title on Sunday.
 
Brandeis took an early lead, winning at second and third doubles. The team of Risa Fukushige and Renee Karchere-Sun fell into a 4-0 hole early against Olivia Leavitt and Lauren Bertsch, but battled back to bring the deficit to 4-3. The teams traded points over the next four games, before the Skidmore pair tied things up at six. Both teams traded points again to send the match into a tiebreak. Brandeis won the tiebreaking set, 7-3 to take a 3-0 team lead into singles.
 
Skidmore seemed to turn the tide in singles, taking the first set at Nos. 1, 3, 4, and 5. The Judges took six, as Sophia He defeated Laura Swenson, 6-0, 6-1, then took No. 2, as Leavitt defeated Dea Koiava, 6-4, 6-2. Fukushige, SooHoo, Karchere-Sun, and Feldman were leading in their respective matches when Brandeis clinched the match.
 
The team portion of the NCAA Tournament ends, but Skidmore will still be represented in Kalamazoo, Mich. Fukushige and Karchere-Sun will compete in the NCAA Division III Individual Championships on May 24-26. Fukushige will compete in singles, while Fukushige and Karchere-Sun will compete in the doubles competition.