NEWBERG, Ore. – Linfield women's tennis showcased their abilities over the weekend at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association DIII Northwest Regional Championships, competing against talent from across the Northwest Conference.
 
Hosted by nearby rival George Fox, a young Wildcat squad saw hopeful performances against top league competition in preparation for the 2026 season.
 
"Overall, this was a tournament that I thought we really competed very well. Our top 4 players on our ladder each tasted victory, and all had hard fought defeats," said head coach Phil Whitehead. "For the remaining players this again was an eye-opening experience that shows how much work we need to put in before the spring season."
 
DOUBLES
Linfield saw its top performance of the weekend from top doubles tandem Kaitlynn Canubida and Emily Redwood. The pair of juniors continued to show why they could be a force in the NWC this spring with a run to the quarterfinals.
 
Seeded as the No. 5 team, Linfield's lead duo opened their weekend on Friday morning with an 8-6 win over Whitworth's Olivia Corbett and Audrey Judson in the round of 32, before beating Pacific's Brook Curtis and Mia Yamaguchi in the round of 16.
 
Their run came to an end Saturday night in the quarterfinals against 4-seed team Riley Bobkiewicz, a first team all-NWC selection last spring, and Shanah Denham, the top team representing host George Fox. The Bruin duo won 8-1, before eventually falling in Sunday's semi-final.
 
Linfield's No. 2 pairing of Sundi King and Gianna Molony entered the weekend unseeded but also registered an opening round win, 8-6 over Puget Sound's Zoe Richter and Ginger Parker. They then fell in the round of 16 to third-seeded Clara Todd and Faith Kert of Whitworth, who would eventually reach the semifinals.
 
SINGLES
The Wildcats were unable to find good fortune in the singles "A Flight," with Canubida, Redwood and Molony all falling in the opening round, Redwood and Molony to seeded opponents.
 
Canubida found herself on the wrong end of an even matchup with Corbett in Friday night's round of 32, taking the opening set via tiebreak before eventually dropping the match in a third-set 10-point tiebreak, Corbett winning 6-7 (2-7), 6-4 (10-8).
 
Linfield's lone all-league selection from 2025 did respond with a win in the consolation bracket, continuing to showcase her ability to take sets via tiebreak with a 6-3, 7-6 (7-4) win over Lewis & Clark's Maya Curry. She fought valiantly in the consolation semifinal against Pacific's Tiara Yeung but was forced to retire due to injury with the match eventually ending in a 7-6 (10-8), 4-3 final.
 
King provided the only other singles win for Linfield, coming in the round of 32 of the "B Flight," where sets were played to four games. Seeded as the No. 5 player in the flight, the sophomore from Kihei, Hawaii dispatched Ella Norman of Puget Sound 5-3, 4-1 before falling to Whitworth's Hannah Wells 6-2, 6-1.
 
"I strongly believe in these young ladies, and I know that after having this next week off to heal up and enjoy time with family over fall break, we will come back hungry and determined to improve and be ready to compete and make a difference in this conference come spring season," said Whitehead.
 
NEXT
Linfield heads into the winter offseason in preparation for spring 2026 in the second year of the second tenure of eighth-year head coach Whitehead. They Wildcats open the season February 7 in McMinnville, hosting the College of Idaho.