By Dave Johnson
W&M Athletics
 
As expected, William & Mary earned the No. 1 seed for the upcoming CAA women's tennis tournament at Mackesy Tennis Center at the Millie West Courts. Which is both exciting and, when you get down to it, somewhat meaningless.
 
After all, it's a new season with new possibilities for all.
 
"To be honest, seeding doesn't really mean anything for us," said Elisa Van Meeteren, a senior who plays No. 2 singles. "The top four teams — us, Delaware, Charleston and Elon — are at a very similar level.
 
"It's nice to be the number one seed, but it's not going to our heads because we know how close those matches were. If we played like we did in those matches, we should win. But we definitely need to bring it, because there's a lot of competition at the top spots."
 
Because there is no conference-set schedule in the regular season, seedings were determined based on criteria that includes head-to-head matches, mutual non-conference opponents, ITA rankings and coaches recommendations.
 
W&M (5-0 in conference matches) is the top seed for the 19th time in the last 26 CAA tournaments. The remaining seeds receiving first-round byes are No. 2 Delaware (7-1), No. 3 Charleston (2-0) and No. 4 Elon (3-2).
 
During the regular season, the Tribe defeated Delaware 4-3 and Elon 6-1. The win over the Blue Hens came down to Hedda Gurholt's 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (4) win at No. 1. Against the Phoenix, three of the five singles victories came in three sets, one in a tie-breaker.
 
"Every match we're going to have to fight for," W&M coach Jessica Giuggioli said. "There won't be any easy matches in this tournament. It's going to be up to us to rise to the challenge every single day we step on the court."
 
William & Mary has an undeniable target on its back, not just as the No. 1 seed and host but as the defending champion. In Giuggioli's first season, the Tribe swept Towson, Delaware and host Elon for its 27th conference championship.
 
Four of this year's singles regulars — Emma Fernald, Ine Stange, Van Meeteren and Gurholt — experienced that run. They're back for another one.
 
Gurholt has replaced Mila Saric at No. 1 and comes in with a 13-3 duals record, 5-0 in conference. Van Meeteren has moved up from No. 4 to 2, where she also went 5-0 in CAA matches with four of the five wins in straight sets.
 
Fernald, who won the clinching match in last year's championship at No. 5, is undefeated against CAA opponents at No. 4. Stange has moved up from No. 6 to 5, where she is 7-2 overall, 3-0 in the Colonial.
 
"Having players who have already been there certainly helps," Giuggioli said. "It brings experience and knowledge of what to expect, and what needs to be done in order to achieve a positive result.
 
"At the same time, we do have some newer players in the lineup who bring some freshness and good energy. We have a good mix."
 
Sofiya Kuzina, a grad transfer from Long Island University, is 7-3 (4-1) at No. 3. Freshman Emma Pell is 8-5 (2-2) at No. 6. Kuzina has championship experience, leading LIU to the Northeast Conference title in 2021.
 
Overall, the experience of having been there and won the trophy can only be a positive.
 
"For me, last year kind of takes some pressure off because we've already won it in my four years," Van Meeteren said. "Now, it's like the cherry on top if we win it again and defend the championship."
 
The first round will begin Thursday morning with the 5 through 12 seeds competing. William & Mary will play the Hampton-North Carolina A&T winner in Friday's first quarterfinal at 9 a.m.
 
The Tribe will be hosting the CAA tournament for the second time in the last three years, but this one is special. As part of the university's $55 million All In campaign, Mackesy Tennis Center at the Millie West Courts has been renovated.
 
Among the improvements are a new playing surface, elevated seating and a scoreboard.
 
"Anytime you can play at home, it's a positive thing," Giuggioli said. "And obviously, we have a brand new facility, which makes it even more exciting."
 
Thursday, April 20 – First Round
Match #1 – 9 a.m. - #8 Hampton vs. #9 N.C. A&T
Match #2 - 12 p.m. - #5 Stony Brook vs. #12 Towson
Match #3 – 3 p.m. - #7 Drexel vs. #10 Monmouth
Match #4 - 6 p.m. - #6 UNCW vs. #11 Hofstra
 
Friday, April 21 - Quarterfinals
Match #5 – 9 a.m. - #1 William & Mary vs. Winner of Match #1
Match #6 - 12 p.m. - #4 Elon vs. Winner of Match #2
Match #7 – 3 p.m. - #2 Delaware vs. Winner of Match #3
Match #8 - 6 p.m. - #3 Charleston vs. Winner of Match #4
 
Saturday, April 22 - Semifinals
Match #9 – 12 p.m. - Winner of Match #5 vs. Winner of Match #6
Match #10 – 3 p.m. - Winner of Match #7 vs. Winner of Match #8
 
Sunday, April 23 - Championship
Match #11 - 2 p.m. - Winner of Match #9 vs. Winner of Match #10