Fordham Women’s Tennis arrived in Orlando, Florida, last Tuesday night with the hope of claiming their second Atlantic 10 Championship title in three years.

The Rams finished their regular season with a stellar 15-4 record, winning their last seven matches and finishing with an 8-0 record against conference competition. Over the course of those matches, the Rams possessed a degree of professionalism that seemed poised to bring them to the promised land. They also brought joy and confidence to every court they stepped foot on. The result was an unrivaled team chemistry marked by positivity and a shared goal: to lift Fordham back to the mountaintop of the A-10.

Even off the court, this team carried a special air about itself. Before boarding their flight Tuesday night, the team played doubles near the bag check — the net? A bunch of suitcases arranged in a line.

“The environment at Fordham is so healthy for the players. Everyone’s really happy here. It just allows us to keep the vibes really high all the time,” said senior Lorraine Bergmann before the team began tournament play.

Despite the team’s light-hearted nature, this was a locked in Fordham team that meant business. “Coach [Michael Sowter] always says ‘let’s get this business done’ before our matches, so we all have this professionalism instilled in us,” remarked Bergmann.

The team’s advantages did stretch beyond their demeanor, though. Having swept their last five opponents in the regular season — not surrendering a point in over a month — the group entered play with fresh legs as well.

By all metrics, Fordham entered the tournament as the conference’s best team. The number 1-seeded Rams enjoyed a first-round bye on Thursday, taking the time to scout their opponents and cheer on their male counterparts.

On Friday morning, they decimated their quarterfinal matchup, the University of Dayton Flyers, 4-0.

The Rams jumped to a 1-0 lead in doubles behind strong play from their second and third pairings, as senior Lorraine Bergmann and sophomore Lily Chitambar won 6-2, and freshmen Paola Ueno Dalmonico and Catalina Padilla Udaeta won 6-1.

In singles, the Rams were competing more against each other than the other team — the objective was to win as fast as possible while expending as little energy as possible. Winning the sprint were junior Nevena Kolarevic, Bergmann and Padilla, who each won in straight sets.

At the start of the weekend, Bergmann had said that the group’s mentality was “win fast, lose slow.”

“It takes just four points to clinch. Even if you’re playing poorly, it’s so important to stay on the court as long as you can for both yourself and your teammates,” said junior Aya Matsunaga in regards to the philosophy.

A day later, embracing the motto, Fordham embarked on a three-and-a-half hour marathon with #5 Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) — a running of the Rams for the ages.

The competition opened with doubles, where Fordham had the clear upper hand. The team secured the point at third doubles, where a deftly placed shot at the net from Dalmonico clinched a thrilling 6-4 win.

At singles, two disparate stories quickly emerged.

Unsurprisingly, in the #1 slot, it was the A-10’s best singles player, Kolarevic, making quick work of her foe, 6-1, 6-2. Kolarevic finished the season an astounding 13-0 in singles. Between her postseason heroics and regular season dominance, the Serbian native seems primed to earn A-10 Performer of the Year. She would be the third-ever Ram to hold the title.

Meanwhile, on every other court, the Rams had to fight from behind. Padilla, who stormed her way to a 6-0, 6-0 win at sixth the morning prior, fell 4-6, 4-6. Dalmonico and sophomore Julianne Nguyen were valiant in two-set defeats — both came back from major deficits in set one before being bested, and both battled before surrendering close defeats in their second sets.

Like that, VCU turned a 2-0 deficit into a 3-2 lead. They would need one more win to clinch a finals appearance.

As the match waned Fordham’s stamina advantage kicked in, warranting comeback efforts from Bergmann and Chitambar at third and fourth singles — each forced third sets after being ousted in the opening frame.

With all eyes on the middle courts, Chitambar was in a dead heat at fourth. Peering left after each point, she glimpsed her doubles partner, Bergmann, playing with her career on the line. In a thrilling match between two A-10 mainstays, Bergmann and VCU’s Mariam Ibrahim, in the end it was Ibrahim who shut the door. The final line: 6-0, 7-5, 6-4. Even as Bergmann played from even or behind for nearly the entire match, the senior embodied the Rams’ undying spirit with every point. Facing a 40-15 deficit on match-point, Bergmann rallied to even the score before coming an inch short of clearing the net with her final shot.

As the reality of the situation sunk in — the end of a career and the end of a season — the entire team ran to her in support.

One of the Rams’ finest, Bergmann retires having helped Fordham capture its first A-10 trophy in 2023.

Bergmann’s ultimate goal, while unfulfilled, was born out of a selfless love for her team: “I remember winning [A-10s] when I was a sophomore — I want all my teammates to feel that feeling. It’s truly the best one in the world, and we are so ready for it. We can all see the finish line,” the New York native passionately postulated before the tournament got underway. While they didn’t get to soak in that glorious feeling this year, Bergmann’s wish lives on in these Rams.

Fordham has a chance to return all seven of its non-graduating players. The world-class Kolarevic will be a senior, as will Matsunaga and Sofie Siem. The ever-reliable Nguyen and Chitambar will become juniors, while the outstanding rookies, Padilla and Dalmonico, will enter their sophomore year.

Bergmann won’t be on the court to help bolster Fordham’s chances going forward, but her leadership and exemplary play are forever embedded in the Hawthorn/Rooney clay. When the Rams return to Rose Hill for the 2025-26 season, their always-strong home court advantage — the team is 10-0 at home in their past two seasons — will feel a little bit stronger.

The Rams will have another marathon ahead of them, but it seems likely that they will be back at the finish line in Orlando next year.
When they make it back, expect them to bring that same mixture of maturity and joy with them. Expect them to earn a first-round bye. Expect them to loosen up by playing doubles in the airport. And, maybe, expect them to have to pay a carry-on fee for a championship trophy on the sweet plane ride home back home to the Bronx.