May 12, 2010
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The 28th-ranked Vanderbilt women’s tennis team will compete in its 16th straight NCAA Tournament this weekend as it travels to the east side of the state for the site of the first and second round of the 2010 NCAA Tournament. The No. 2 seed, Commodores (13-9, 7-4 SEC) will take on third-seeded Indiana (15-9, 5-6 Big Ten) Friday in the first round at 9 a.m. CT in Knoxville.
The winner of Friday’s match will advance to the round of 32 to play the winner of Tennessee (16-8, 8-3 SEC) and Winthrop (16-8, 6-1 Big South) at 2 p.m. Saturday. Weather permitting, all matches will be played at the Tennessee’s outdoor Varsity Courts complex.
The Commodores enter the NCAA tournament winners of four of its last five dual matches. Vanderbilt advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2010 SEC Tournament last month, posting a 4-0 win over Mississippi State before falling to 13th-ranked Tennessee, 4-2.
“We are thrilled to be playing in the NCAA Tournament for the 16th year in a row,” Head Coach Geoff Macdonald said. “We are going to a very solid regional in Knoxville to play and our first-round opponent (Indiana) is a very well coached and talented team. Indiana has a storied tennis program and they have experience playing in the postseason.
Vanderbilt in the NCAA Tournament
The Commodores are 32-15 all-time in the NCAA Championships under current head coach Geoff Macdonald. In addition, Vanderbilt is 13-2 all-time in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. With Macdonald at the helm, the Commodores have experienced a tremendous amount of success in postseason play. Before 2009, Vanderbilt had advanced to 11-straight Sweet 16’s. The `Dores best finish came in 2001 when they advanced to the National Championship match against Stanford. Vanderbilt also made the Final Four in 2004, led by All-Americans Aleke Tsoubanos, Kelly Schmandt and Audra Falk.
A Closer Look at Indiana
The Hoosiers are making their 27th NCAA appearance in 33 seasons under legendary coach Lin Loring. Indiana’s head coach is the winningest coach in NCAA women’s tennis history with 748 victories. Individually, IU has been led all season by their two All-Big Ten performers, Leslie Hureau and sophomore transfer Evegeniya Vertesheva. Both Hureau and Vertesheva have filled the top two slots in the singles lineup for the entire 2009-10 season.
Notes on Vanderbilt-Indiana series
The `Dores first round match with the Hoosiers will mark the first Big Ten opponent VU has played this year. The Commodores have never met Indiana in the NCAA Tournament. In Vanderbilt’s 15 previous NCAA tournament appearances, the Commodores have only faced one opponent from the Big Ten and that came in 2009 when they were edged by Illinois, (L, 4-3) in the first round in Urbana.
`Dores headed to familiar territory
This will mark the second trip this spring and third in the calendar year to Knoxville. Out of the four teams in the Knoxville regional, Vanderbilt has only played Tennessee. The `Dores have a 1-2 record against UT this spring, with their win (W, 5-2) coming during the SEC regular season on March 12. The Lady Vols edged Vanderbilt, 4-3 in the final day of the ITA Kick-Off Weekend and then outlasted the `Dores 4-2 in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament.
Newman, Preeg, Blatt earn All-SEC plaudits
Following the regular season, Vanderbilt’s Catherine Newman and Chelsea Preeg were named All-SEC players by the league’s coaches. Newman was named a first-team All-SEC selection while Preeg was a second-team selection. In addition to being named to the first-team Newman was also named the SEC Women’s Tennis Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Fellow senior Hannah Blatt was named to the 2010 SEC Community Service team for her outstanding efforts in the Nashville community.
VU Trio in latest ITA national rankings
Vanderbilt’s Catherine Newman, Jackie Wu and Chelsea Preeg have been ranked in singles the entire season. In the latest rankings (May 3, 2010) Newman was ranked No. 23 in singles, marking the highest ranking of the season for the senior captain. Wu is ranked 32nd while Preeg checks in at No. 86. The sophomore tandem of Preeg and Wu have been ranked most of the year in doubles and check in at No. 33 in the latest poll.
Newman, Wu earn NCAA singles selection
Earlier this month, VU’s Catherine Newman and Jackie Wu were selected to play in the 2010 NCAA Division I Women’s Singles Championship held later this month in Athens, Ga. Wu will be making her second straight NCAA singles appearance while Newman will make her third trip in four years to the NCAA singles championship.
Overview of NCAA Tournament Format
The teams will play a single-elimination tournament at 16 first and second-round sites (four teams at each site) and the finals site (16-team bracket) to determine the national champion. The matches shall be regulation dual matches with three (3) eight-game, pro-set doubles played for one team point, followed by six (6) singles matches, each valued at one team point, played best of three sets. Regular scoring will be used and a 12-point tiebreaker will be played at eight games all in doubles and at six games all in singles.
Live stats of Friday’s match with Vanderbilt and Indiana will be available at utladyvols.com.
NCAA Regional Information– May 14-15
UT Varsity Complex/Goodfriend Tennis Center, Knoxville, Tenn.
First Round – Friday, May 14
9 a.m. – Vanderbilt vs. Indiana
12 p.m. – Tennessee vs. Winthrop
Second Round – Saturday, May 15
2 p.m.- Winner of Vanderbilt/Indiana vs. Winner of Tennessee/Winthrop