Feb. 5, 2009
Surprise, Ariz. — Former Vanderbilt tennis All-American Julie Ditty, who led the Commodores to the NCAA Championship match in 2001, has been named to the prestigious U.S. Fed Cup Team.
Ditty was in San Francisco when she received a phone call from U.S. Fed Cup Captain Mary Joe Fernandez on Monday night.
Bethanie Mattek had to withdraw from the U.S. Fed Cup Team’s upcoming tie against Argentina this weekend because of a lingering hip injury. Was Ditty interested in quickly coming to Surprise, Ariz., to take her place?
It was a no-brainer. Ditty was on a plane the very next day, arriving in Surprise late Tuesday night as the last team member to arrive and prepare to play on her very first U.S. Fed Cup Team under Fernandez, whom she had never met before.
“I was thrilled to get that call. I am just really honored to be able to represent my country,” Ditty, 30, said. “I think we have a really great group of girls here. I’m just really excited to be part of the team.”