Chiacchia wins Elite 20 award after final match

Fredonia State fell to New Paltz, 5-0, in the semifinals of the SUNYAC Women's Tennis championships Thursday. One of the Blue Devils brought home the conference's top academic award.

The Blue Devils (3-4), seeded No. 2 from the West Division, were facing the top-seeded Hawks (7-0) from the East Division in the cross-over tournament tournament. No. 1 West seed Oswego met No. 2 East seed Oneonta in the other semifinal. New Paltz won the SUNYAC title by defeating Oneonta, 5-1, in Thursday night's championship match. It was the third straight title for the Hawks.

Thursday's match completed the collegiate careers of senior Taylor Marelli and junior Jane Chiacchia, who will graduate early this spring. Chiacchia was take with her the SUNYAC Elite 20 award for having the highest grade-point average among all the competitors at the championship round. Majoring in Applied Mathematics and Exercise Science, Chiacchia entered the competition with a GPA of 3.96. The SUNYAC Elite 20, an award modeled after the NCAA ELITE 90 program, recognizes the true essence of the student-athlete by honoring the individual who has reached the pinnacle of competition at the conference championship level in his or her sport, while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers. 

This is the first year SUNYAC held its women's tennis season in the spring. In past years, the league season was held in the fall with the conference champ automatically qualifying for the NCAA championship tournament the following spring.