ROME, Ga. -- Furman sophomores Lillie Murphy and Elle Warren came from behind to beat Riley Crowder and Sarah Victoria Majesty Nita, 4-6, 6-4, 10-5, Sunday in the semifinals of the ITA Conference Masters Championship at the Rome Tennis Center in Rome, Ga., and, for the second year in a row, advance to the NCAA Division I Individual Championship, which will be held Nov. 17-22 at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex in Athens, Ga.
The Paladin duo won four-consecutive matches to advance at the tournament. Warren and Murphy defeated Charlotte Roesch and Kim Kuehbauer of Texas State-San Marcos, 6-3, 6-1, to open the event, then held off North Carolina's Alexis Nguyen and Aya Manning, 7-5, 6-3, in the round of 16. In the quarterfinals, Furman came from behind for a 3-6, 6-4, 10-2 advantage over McNeese State's Ana Hollweg and Elena Morales Dorantes to reach the semifinals.
"It is an incredible accomplishment to qualify for NCAAs in back-to-back years," said Furman head coach Michelle Dasso. "That is no easy task, and we are unbelievably proud of the composure the girls played with."
The top two doubles teams from the ITA Masters Championship will now square off against the ITA All-American Champions, the 13 regional champions, and 12 sectional champions at the NCAA Individual National Championship, which is being held in the fall for the third-consecutive year.Â
Murphy also competed in singles at the Conference Masters Championship, where she beat Nebraska Omaha's Katelynn Kock, 6-1, 6-1, in a consolation match.Â
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ITA Conference Masters Championship
Main Singles Draw
Rd 32 Sarah Hartel def. Lillie Murphy (FUR), 6-3, 3-6, 6-4
Consolation Singles Draw
Rd 16 Lillie Murphy (Furman) def. Katelynn Kock (Nebraska Omaha), 6-1, 6-1
Quarter Sasha Sakura Stula (DePaul) def. Lillie Murphy (Furman), 7-5, 6-1Â
Main Doubles Draw
Rd 32 Warren/Murphy (FUR) def. Roesch/Kuehbauer (Texas St.-SM), 6-3, 6-1
Rd 16 Warren/Murphy (FUR) def. Nguyen/Manning (UNC), 7-5, 6-3
Quarter Warren/Murphy (FUR) def. Hollweg/Morales Dorantes (McNeese State), 3-6, 6-4, 10-2Â
Semi Warren/Murphy (FUR) def. Crowder/Nita (Ole Miss), 4-6, 6-4, 10-5Â