On the heels of a loss to Kalamazoo, Hope showed poise as it bounced back against the Belles of St. Mary's to book a rematch with Kalamazoo College in the MIAA Tournament championship on Friday.

Hope improved to 12-6 overall.

Freshman Amanda Lopykinski (Lemont, Illinois / Lemont Township HS) and sophomore Sullivan Moran (Birmingham, Michigan / Wylie E. Groves) secured an 8-2 win to start the scoring at DeWitt Tennis Center.

Senior Taylor Truman (Hudsonville, Michigan / Hudsonville) and sophomore Miyako Coffey (Cedar Rapids, Iowa / Xavier) followed suit with an 8-4 victory, giving the Flying Dutch the lead heading into singles play.

In singles play, Hope's three All-MIAA Athletes excelled, as they each won their matches.

Moran tallied the first singles victory for Hope as she served up a double bagel against her opponent, winning 6-0 and 6-0 in 50 short minutes for a No. 2 singles line victory.

Junior Annika Weeber (Rockford, Michigan / Grand Rapids Christian) displayed dominance at the net, winning 68% (27/40) of points en route to a convincing 6-2, 6-2 victory at No. 3 singles.

Lopykinski swung hard early, fighting to a 6-2 first set victory. Lopykinski was challenged in the second set, with her opponent, Lucy Chamberlin, a second team All-MIAA honoree, serving at 5-4 to possibly send the match to a deciding set. 

Lopykinski dug in and broke serve to tie the set at 5-5, then held and broke once more to clinch the match and send Hope to the MIAA Championship.

Hope's 5-3 victory over St. Mary's gives the team a chance to extend its record-setting 10 consecutive MIAA Championships.

As things came down to the wire, second-year coach Austin Hunt reaffirmed his trust in his team, who he knew could put things away. 

When asked about what the opportunity to have a rematch against the Hornets in the MIAA Championship means, he responded, "To get back and have a chance again at them, that's all these girls have really talked about."

Hope will travel to Kalamazoo on Friday, April 28, at 4:30 p.m. for the title match.