TEMPE, Ariz. -- Following up their semifinal showing in the NCAA Division III Championship, the Kenyon College Ladies claimed the No. 4 spot in the final Oracle Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Division III women's national ranking.

That spot was the Ladies' best since they were positioned at No. 2 following the 1997-98 season. Their current rank also reflects a steady improvement over the last five years. In 2016-17, the Ladies were at No. 30. They improved eight spots in each of the next two seasons and then moved to No. 12 at the end of the 2019-20 season.

During their most recent campaign, one shortened due to the COVID-10 pandemic, the Ladies whipped up an 11-1 record. They went 7-0 during the regular season, including a 5-0 mark in North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) competition. In the postseason, they defeated DePauw University to win the conference title and earn a berth in the NCAA Championship. Once in the national tournament, the Ladies marched all the way to the semifinal round before falling to No. 2 Wesleyan University.

The team's No. 4 national rank was backed by the  No. 1 spot within the ITA's Central Region ranking.

Additionally, both senior Erika Oku and junior Daria Beshentseva were listed among the ITA's singles and doubles rankings. Oku, the Ladies' top player, went 7-2 this past season and was labeled as the ITA's No. 10-ranked singles player in NCAA Division III, as well as the No. 1-ranked singles player within the Central Region. Beshentseva produced a 6-2 singles mark and picked up a No. 47 national rank and a No. 15 regional rank.

Paired together, Oku and Beshentseva registered a 6-2 doubles mark this past season. The ITA slotted the duo at No. 10 in its national ranking and at No. 1 in its Central Region ranking.