West Chester Earns Five All-League Nods; Tharp and Shaak Major Award Winners
LOCK HAVEN, Pa. – West Chester University's women's tennis squad registered five players on the All-PSAC East squad, which was announced Wednesday afternoon. Claiming major awards for the Golden Rams were head coach Tina Tharp and senior Maddy Shaak (Myerstown, Pa./Eastern Lebanon County). West Chester claimed its third consecutive PSAC East title, continuing its dominance. The squad has compiled 21 consecutive conference wins while obtaining 15 straight 9-0 victories. Tharp captured coach of the year plaudits for the third year in a row and fifth time in her nine-year stint at West Chester. She is the first coach in program history to reach the 100-win plateau on the women's side and holds a career record of 108-72. Shaak, a four-time All-PSAC East pick, took home athlete of the year honor for the second consecutive season. In her senior campaign, Shaak put together a 15-4 record that placed her on first team All-PSAC. Claire Uhle (Blue Bell, Pa./Wissahickon) was a first team pick for the third straight year while earning athlete of the year in 2015. The duo walked away first-team All-PSAC in doubles, while authoring a 19-5 record so far this season. She contributed an impressive 15-6 record in singles this season, which puts her first in program history at 55 wins. The third player obtaining first team honors in back-to-back seasons was Rylee Power (Newtown Square, Pa./Marple Newtown). The sophomore was 16-4 in singles and added second-team in doubles with Gracyn Towler (West Chester, Pa./Unionville). The two were 10-8 this season for the Golden Rams. Sr., Abriana Nolan (Honesdale, Pa./Honesdale) rounds out the five members of West Chester's squad to earn All-PSAC nods. Nolan collected second team All-PSAC in singles for the second straight year, while also being first-team during her sophomore campaign. West Chester University's women's tennis squad found out that it's 2017 campaign is not over yet, making its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1983. They will face third-seeded Charleston (WV) (18-3), the Mountain East Conference champions, in Erie, Pa., at host institution Mercyhurst.
