SUMTER, S.C. --- Wingate University captured the South Atlantic Conference Women's Tennis Championship tournament title with a 4-1 victory over Tusculum University Saturday afternoon at the Palmetto Tennis Center.

The second-seeded Bulldogs (19-3), ranked 13th in Division II, earned the doubles point and followed up by winning three of the first four completed singles matches against the top-seeded Pioneers (17-6), who are ranked 18th in Division II.

Wingate earns the automatic bid from the SAC to the NCAA Division II Tournament, while Tusculum will await a possible at-large berth. The bracket will be released Monday night at 8:30 p.m. on ncaa.com.

In doubles, Tusculum gained the early advantage as Leonie Floeth and Ylva Frafjord Landa defeated Gaya Solomon and Saga Berggren 6-2 at flight three. However, Wingate came back to take the team point as Chloe Kosmrlj and Suzuka Sambyakugari defeated Tabitha Howe and Paulina Loretz 6-3 at flight one, followed by a 6-3 victory at flight two by Elena Gunfaus and Alex Lopez over Elodie Baechler and Valentina Loretz.

Tusculum evened the match at 1-1 as Valentina Loretz defeated Lopez 6-4, 6-4 at flight six, but Sambyakugari but Wingate up for good with a 6-2, 7-5 win at flight four over Paulina Loretz. Kosmrlj picked up a 6-2, 4-6, 6-0 win over Floeth at flight one for a 3-1 Bulldogs lead, and with the Pioneers leading the other two remaining singles matches, Flaminia Guidantoni delivered the clincher for Wingate with a 7-5, 7-6 (8-6) victory at flight five over Landa.

The Bulldogs, who were making their eighth consecutive appearance in the SAC Championship final, claimed their seventh tournament title with the victory over the Pioneers, who were making their first finals appearance since 2019.