Women's Tennis Begins Postseason Play Friday Against Alfred

By Mike Hogan, Athletics Communications Coordinator

10/15/2026 1:36:00 PM

No. 2-Seeded St. John Fisher (7-3 Overall, 6-2 Empire 8)

No. 6-Seeded Alfred (7-6 Overall, 4-4 Empire 8)

Head Coach: Jordan Crouch (9th season)

Empire 8 Championship Central

The 2026 Empire 8 Women's Tennis Championship Tournament will feature the conference's top six teams from regular season play. First round action will feature the No. 3 seed hosting the No. 6 seed and No. 4 seed hosting the No. 5 seed on Tuesday, Oct. 13 or Wednesday, Oct. 14.

The top overall seed will host the semifinals and championship matches. The top seed will take on the winner of the No. 4/No. 5 match in one semifinal and the No. 2 seed will play the winner of the No. 3/No. 6 match in the second semifinal on Friday, Oct. 16. The two semifinal winners will meet on Saturday, Oct. 17 for the E8 Championship.

The Empire 8 Champion will earn an automatic berth into the 2026-27 NCAA Division III Women's Tennis Championship Tournament, which begins May 14, 2027.

Postseason Format:
Three 6-game doubles pro sets (doubles count as one point total) followed by six singles matches (singles matches count one point each) for a total of 7 team points. The team that wins two of the three doubles matches receives one dual match point. Each singles match is worth one point. Four or more points are required to win the dual match.

Doubles – Doubles matches played until one team wins two of the three doubles matches. If one team wins two doubles matches before the third is finished, the third match is unfinished.
Singles – Singles matches played until the winning team earns four points (between doubles and singles) to clinch the match. Any matches that are not completed go into the stats as unfinished.

Site: Higher Seeds for first round matches; top-seed to host semifinal and championship matches

2026 Empire 8 Women's Tennis Championship Schedule

Tuesday, October 13 – First Round (at Higher Seed)

No. 6 Alfred University defeated No. 3 Hartwick College, 4-3 – BOX SCORE

No. 4 Nazareth University defeated No. 5 SUNY Brockport, 4-1 – BOX SCORE

Friday, October 16 – Semifinals (hosted by SUNY Geneseo)

Indoors – Houghton University (Kerr-Pegula Field House) - 1 Willard Ave., Houghton, NY 14744

No. 4 Nazareth University at No. 1 SUNY Geneseo – 11 a.m.

No. 2 St. John Fisher University vs. No. 6 Alfred University – 2 p.m.

Saturday, October 17 Championship (hosted by SUNY Geneseo)

Indoors – Houghton University (Kerr-Pegula Field House) - 1 Willard Ave., Houghton, NY 14744

Winner of Semifinal #1 vs. Winner of Semifinal #2 – 1 p.m.

How They Got Here

St. John Fisher: The Cardinals went 7-3 overall and 6-2 in Empire 8 action to secure the No. 2 seed with a first-round bye for the conference’s championship tournament. Their seven dual victories marked their most since the 2017-18 season.

Alfred: Alfred went 6-6 in the regular season with a mark of 4-4 in conference play. They earned the No. 6 seed for the E8 Championship Tournament and advanced to the semifinals with a 4-3 first-round win on the road over No. 3-seeded Hartwick. Alfred claimed the doubles point against Hartwick with victories at second and third doubles. The Saxons then claimed singles victories at fourth, fifth and sixth singles to advance.

Series History: St. John Fisher vs. Alfred

Series Snapshot: Friday’s contest will mark the 46th meeting between St. John Fisher and Alfred. The Saxons hold a 24-21 lead in the series.

Postseason Meetings: St. John Fisher has faced Alfred seven times in the Empire 8 Championship Tournament. Alfred owns a 4-3 edge in those matches and has won the last two contests, including the 4-2 in the first round last year.

Last Meeting: The Saxons handed the Cardinals one of their two E8 regular-season losses on Oct. 3, winning 6-1 at the Alfred University Tennis Courts. St. John Fisher had been riding a four-match winning streak.

Sophomore Adriana Colafranceschi and senior Isabella Busch earned a 6-5 win at first doubles to improve to 3-4 as partners this season. Alfred, though, claimed the doubles point with victories at second and third doubles.

Colafranceschi claimed the Cardinals' only singles victory, beating Becca Epping in straight sets, 6-0 and 6-1. She improved to 8-1 overall and pushed her winning streak to seven matches.

St. John Fisher Players To Watch

Lily Miller (Singles) – Miller, a senior, owns a 5-5 record at first singles this season and holds the program record for career singles wins (32).

Adriana Colafranceschi (Singles) – Colafranceschi, who’s played at second singles all season, owns a team-best 9-1 record, including 6-1 in E8 matches, and is riding an eight-match winning streak. The sophomore recorded Fisher’s lone victory in a 6-1 loss to Alfred during the regular season.

Isabella Busch (Singles) – Busch enters postseason action 8-2 overall at third singles. The senior has won seven of her last eight matches and owns a 5-2 record against Empire 8 opponents.

Colafranceschi/Busch (Doubles) – The duo owns a team-high four victories in doubles play and has won three consecutive matches. They have played all eight of their matches this season at first doubles.