Four Reel In All-CC Honors for Women's Tennis

Posted: May 10, 2023

HAVERFORD, Pa. - The Haverford College women's tennis team placed four members of the squad on the All-Centennial Conference teams, the conference office announced in its annual postseason awards release.

Ellie Esterowitz earned a nod on the first team while Mimi Lavin and Abbey Russano were each named to Second-team All-Centennial Conference singles honors. Rachael Fitzgerald was additionally named to honorable mention All-Centennial honors. The doubles pairing of Esterowitz and Lavin also earned honorable mention designation. Fitzgerald was named to the Centennial Conference All-Sportsmanship team.

Esterowitz, of Rockville, Md. earned the first-team All-Centennial Conference pick for singles this season after logging an impressive 2023 dual-match season, with a 12-5 record in singles play, including a 4-1 record at the first flight and an 8-4 record at the second flight. She secured victories over regionally ranked competitors such as Jay Xiao of Johns Hopkins, and climbed from third to second in the final Region III individual rankings. She adds the honor to a second-team singles nod a season ago. Her season will continue as she picked up a spot in the bracket for the NCAA Division III Singles Championships in Orlando.

Lavin, of Boca Raton, Fla. earns a second consecutive All-CC singles team honor after she went 10-6 in the dual-match season, including a 4-3 mark in conference play. Lavin was 1-0 at the second flight, but saw the majority of action at the third flight, going 6-6. She has 29 career wins to her ledger at Haverford.

Russano, of Bridgewater, N.J. an NCAA qualifier a season ago, went 6-10 in the dual match season, but 5-3 in conference play, including a 3-0 mark at the second flight. Fitzgerald, of Waterford, Va. logged a 12-6 dual-match record, including a commanding 7-1 edge in CC play, going 4-2 at the third flight and 7-4 overall at the fourth flight this season.

The doubles pairing of Esterowitz and Lavin was consistently one of the best teams in the entire conference this season, going 11-3 in the dual match season, including a 4-1 mark in conference play. As the second doubles pairing, the duo went 10-3, and finished the season on a five-match win streak.

Women's tennis concluded the 2022-23 team season with a fifth consecutive trip to the Centennial Conference semifinals, where the Fords fell to Swarthmore. Haverford compiled an 11-8 overall record, and a 7-2 mark in conference play.

Esterowitz will continue to represent the Fords at the NCAA Singles Championships, with action beginning in Central Florida on May 19.