ETTRICK, VA- After defeating the Panthers 4-0 in the Quarterfinals of the CIAA Women's Tennis Championship Friday afternoon, the No. 2-seeded Trojans were upset in the semifinals by the Golden Bulls 4-2 Friday evening. 

Quarterfinals Final Score: Trojans 4 – Panthers 0

With the win, the Trojans' record improved to 12-3 and they advanced to the Semifinals of the 2023 CIAA Women's Tennis Championship.

How It Happened: Virginia State's Jayce Gaither and Anijah Burrows swept the Panthers 6-0 at the No. 3-doubles spot and then picked up additional sweeps in the No. 5 and No. 6 singles, respectively. 

Mackenzie Pago earned the Trojans another (6-0, 6-0) sweep at 3-singles. Finally, in doubles competition, the tandem of Ashleigh Charles and Ginger Johnson won 6-2 at the No.1 slot.

Semifinals Final Score: Trojans 2 – Golden Bulls 4

How It Happened: Charles and Johnson won 6-4 at No.1doubles for Virginia State but the Trojans dropped the matchups at the No. 2 and No. 3 doubles spots. Pago and Burrows put up a good fight at No.2 before ultimately dropping the match to the Golden Bulls, 7-5.

Johnson was the only Trojans player to win in singles action, defeating JCSU's Kyndall Ragins (6-3, 6-3) at #2-singles. Golden Bulls' victories at the No. 1 singles and No. 3 singles positions secured their spot in the championship. Johnson battled at No. 1 singles but dropped both sets by a score of 6-2 and Pago fought valiantly at No. 3 singles before being bested (6-4, 6-3).

Virginia State concludes the season with an overall record of 12-4 with the loss. The Golden Bulls' win earned them an appearance in the conference championship game against Shaw University. 

For more information on VSU Athletics, follow Trojans Athletics on Twitter @VSUsports, or call 804-524-5030.