EAST MEADOW, N.Y. – Junior Jess Perkins finished as the runner-up in the singles draw at the 2016 Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) East Region Women's Championship after splitting a pair of matches on Tuesday at Eisenhower Park.

ITA Regional Homepage | Tournament Draw | Results

After winning three matches to get to the semifinals, Perkins started the day by facing No. 2 seed Grace Messina of Merrimack, who had defeated Perkins three times over the last three seasons. However, Perkins recorded a 6-3, 6-3 victory over the three-time Northeast-10 Conference Player of the Year to advance to the finals.

Perkins' win over Messina meant the junior had defeated the No. 3, No. 6 and No. 2 seeds to advance to the final. Prior to the loss to Perkins, Messina had a career record of 68-14 and was responsible for half of Perkins' six losses in her two-plus seasons on the Hilltop.

In the final, Perkins came up against the No. 4 seed, Gabriela Siembab of NYIT, who defeated teammate and top seed Lena Dimmer in the other semifinal. Siembab ended Perkins' run with a 6-2, 6-4 victory to take home the regional title and advance to the ITA National Small College Championships.

With her 4-1 showing at the regional as the No. 16 seed, Perkins is now 13-2 on the season for Saint Anselm and 40-7 in her career.

Perkins and the rest of the Hawks play at American International College on Wednesday, Oct. 5 at 3:30 p.m.