NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Vanderbilt’s Marcella Cruz was named to the SEC Women’s Tennis All-Newcomer Team on Friday afternoon after breaking through with a stellar sophomore campaign in 2020-21.
Cruz won a combined 34 matches between singles and doubles to finish one off the overall team lead for the season. She was named SEC Newcomer of the Week on March 17 after starting Vanderbilt’s comeback against Kentucky when the Dores answered a 3-1 deficit to beat the 31st-ranked Wildcats 4-3.
In singles action, Cruz got stronger as the season progressed, finishing 16-10 overall while going 13-5 in dual-match action. In doubles, she partnered all season with Emma Kurtz and reached as high as No. 56 in the country. All in all, Cruz won 18 doubles matches over the course of 2020-21, which was also one off Kurtz’s team high.
