AVE MARIA, Fla.- The Ave Maria University women's tennis team thoroughly dominated an NCAA Division II opponent Thursday evening, cruising to a 6-0 victory over the Tritons of Eckerd College at the AMU Tennis Complex. The Gyrenes, the eleventh ranked team in the nation in the newest NAIA Coaches' Poll, did not drop a set en route to the sweep, and would have won all nine matches had the final singles match not been abandoned due to heavy rains, which also forced the abandonment of the men's match, which saw Ave Maria leading 3-2.

Ave Maria started doubles play with a lead, as Eckerd did not field a third doubles team. Needing just one win to secure the doubles point, the nationally-ranked team of Lara Teodoro and Vitoria Barandas made quick work of their opponents, winning 6-0 to put Ave Maria up 1-0 in the match. Andrea Rodriguez Oria and Julia Candiotto finished off the sweep with a 6-3 win over Eckerd's number two team of Theo Schultz and Lili Reichert.

AMU again earned an automatic point in singles play, as the sixth spot was a default win for the Gyrenes. It didn't take long for the AMU women to clinch the match, starting with a 6-1, 6-1 from Julia Candiotto at the number one spot. Valentine Colin didn't drop a point in her match at the number two spot, a 6-0, 6-0 win. Andrea Rodriguez Oria added a third shutout set in a 6-2, 6-0 win at the third singles position.

Vitoria Barandas added another dominant win at the number four spot, defeating Eckerd's Raia Jagger, 6-3, 6-0. The final match of the day, between AMU's Kely Oliveira and Eckerd's Julia Triska, would go unfinished. Oliveira took the first set, 6-2, and held a 5-4 lead in the second set when a torrential downpour arrived in southwest Florida and forced the match to be suspended.

With two matches remaining in the regular season, the Gyrenes still await their fate for a spot in The Sun Conference Tournament, which mostly lies out of AMU's hands, but will require a win over Warner in the league finale on April 9 in Babson Park. That match is scheduled for 1:00 pm Saturday afternoon.