PELLA—A rainy day did not prevent the Central College women's tennis team for solidifying a third-place finish in the Iowa Conference with a 5-2 victory over Wartburg College.
            
Central (8-2, 6-2 conference) fell in the second match 9-0 against Luther College.
           
The Dutch have earned a top-three spot in the league for the second time in the last three seasons under Ferrell.
           
"We took care of business, but it was still a battle," coach Ryun Ferrell said. "Wartburg is a pretty similar team to us in that they are pretty deep and they get the ball back. Sweeping the doubles took the pressure off of us a little bit."
           
Central did indeed sweep the doubles, including an 8-3 win at the top by Karleigh Schilling (freshman, Swisher, Cedar Rapids Prairie HS) and Kari Grindberg (senior, Fort Dodge) at No. 1.
           
At No. 2 doubles, Paige Vannausdle (senior, Red Oak) and EmmaGrace Walter (junior, Johnston) came out on top 8-6 and the No. 3 pairing of Madison Krumm (sophomore, Kellogg, Grinnell HS) and Ashley Maley (senor, Waverly, Waverly-Shell Rock HS) won 8-5.
           
Grindberg and Maley had the two singles wins at No. 2 and No. 1, respectively to seal the match in the favor of Central.
           
The three doubles matches went the exact opposite way in the loss against the Norse, dropping all three contests.
           
"We played as well as we could, they just outplayed us," Ferrell said. "Going down 3-0 against Luther is a tough hill for anyone to climb, especially when you've already played a tough match earlier in the day."
           
Schilling had the lone victory against Luther 7-5, 7-6 at No. 3 singles.
           
The Iowa Conference Individual Championships start at 8 a.m. on Friday in Waterloo and Ferrell is excited about the opportunity.
           
"We're going to bring 16 players," Ferrell said. "It'll be a great way to cap off the fall and see what we can do. We've had an amazing season and these women have played so hard."