Sunshine State Conference

Winners of the Last Six National Titles, Barry Ranked First in SSC Women's Tennis Poll

01.24.24

Head coaches pick Barry to win an eighth regular-season title

MELBOURNE, Fla. – Barry University repeats as the preseason favorite in the Sunshine State Conference Women's Tennis Coaches' Poll. The six-time defending national champions received 78 points and seven first-place votes in this 2024 edition of the poll.

The Top-4 teams remain unchanged from the past two preseason rankings. Following Barry are Nova Southeastern and Lynn, tied with 70 points. However, the Sharks received an advantage with the final three first-place votes. Saint Leo, with 57 points, rounds out the Top 4. Tampa garnered 43 points and landed in fifth place, edging Embry-Riddle 43 to 42 points. Florida Southern (37 points), Rollins (29 points), Palm Beach Atlantic University (17 points), and Eckerd College (9 points) take up the remaining spots of the coaches ranking.

Barry took the 2023 regular season crown with a 9-0 tally in league play. It is the third consecutive and seventh overall league title for the Buccaneers since the league began naming regular champions in 2014. Barry also repeats as the league's tournament champion and owns 14 SSC tournament trophies. Nova Southeastern finished second in the league standings at 8-1 and fell to Barry in the tournament championship. NSU and Lynn were the only teams to take two or more points during Barry's 28 matches last season

In NCAA Division II regional action, Barry collected the top seed in the region and hosted the South Region #1 tournament. The Buccaneers took Benedict and Lynn down to advance. Nova Southeastern earned the No. 2 seed and hosted the South Region #2 tournament. After first-round wins, NSU and Saint Leo met in the title game, with the Sharks getting the 4-0 victory.

In the Sweet 16, Barry grabbed the top seed and ran through Missouri Western (4-0), Cameron (4-0), and Flagler to meet NSU in the national final. The #2 seeded Sharks dispatched Drury (4-0), Columbus State (4-0), and Hawaii Pacific (4-2). Barry got the better of NSU for the third time in 2023 (4-1) to bring home the national championship trophy and finished the undefeated season for the second consecutive year. The 2023 season marks the fourth All-SSC final in the NCAA D2 Women's Tournament. Lynn and Barry battled in 2011, 2017, and 2019.

Barry is the reigning NCAA Division II Women's Tennis champion six times over and accounts for eight of the league's 12 titles, winning it all in 2011, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2023 (The 2020 tournament was canceled due to COVID-19). Lynn won back-to-back national titles in 1997-1998, followed by a third in 2001. The remaining championship belongs to the University of North Florida (1994).

The Intercollegiate Tennis Association has Barry, Nova Southeastern, and Lynn as the preseason Top-3 in 2024. Saint Leo (5th) and Tampa (25th) also represent the SSC in the preseason ranking.

Below are the full results of the 2024 SSC preseason coaches' poll. Coaches may not vote for their teams  (points: 9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1, first-place votes in parentheses).

 

2024 SSC WOMEN’S TENNIS PRESEASON COACHES POLL
Rank	School (FPV)	Total Points
1	Barry (7)	78
T2	Nova Southeastern (3)	70
T2	Lynn	70
4	Saint Leo	57
5	Tampa	43
6	Embry-Riddle	42
7	Florida Southern	37
8	Rollins	27
9	Palm Beach Atlantic	17
10	Eckerd	9

 

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