Aug. 26, 2015
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – With the field set, the inaugural Oracle/ITA Masters will take place Sept. 18-20 with three Commodores in attendance. Hosted by Pepperdine University at the Malibu Racquet Club in Malibu, Calif., Vandy is looking forward to taking part the first national collegiate championship of the 2015-16 season.
Coming off last season’s thrilling tournament play, Sydney Campbell, Courtney Colton and Astra Sharma are eager to get back out on the court for the black and gold, competing against some the top players in the country.
Sixteen of the top returning Division I men’s and women’s singles players will compete, along with eight outstanding men’s and women’s doubles teams. Each participant is guaranteed two matches.
“The Oracle tournament is really cool because it’s Larry Ellison getting involved in college tennis,” said head coach Geoff Macdonald. “He’s always been the promoter of Palm Desert, which is called the 5th grand slam. So he’s now seeing the merit in college tennis in not only the development of future pros, but future CEOs, leaders, and PHDs. It’s a remarkable sport and I think that story isn’t told enough.”
With what looks to be a star-studded event, our 2015 All-Americans, Campbell and Sharma will be competing in singles tournament action against several familiar foes, including Virginia’s No. 5 Julia Elbaba, a three-time All-American and last year’s USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Singles Championship.
Coming off a phenomenal season at No. 1 singles and doubles, Campbell, ranked No. 10 in the country, will begin her junior campaign vying for the title amongst three other opponents in in the ITA top 10.
“Sydney healed a couple of nagging injuries and trained really hard in the gym this summer with Emil Iankov. In watching her summer workouts, she’s been working on becoming a more complete player. I love her attitude towards growth”
Ranked No. 21 in the county by the ITA and a current ITF ranking of No. 763, SEC and NCAA tournament MVP, Sharma, is sure to make waves in the singles draw of the Oracle/ITA tournament.
“It was a really wonderful summer for Astra. She won a pro event in Egypt so she’s on the board in the rankings, as is Frances Altick. We’ve talked a lot about a long-term developmental plan for what she needs to do to make it to the next level. The key is to just to be really patient and to take it day by day. She used to only focus on what she’s doing, and now she’s learned to be more aware of her opponent and what tactics work; it’s a huge growth step, that some people never make. I’m thrilled for her.”
No. 13 Colton and Campbell team up for one final year, as the senior/junior duo are the second-highest ranked team to compete in Malibu. Last season the Commodore pairing played outstanding last fall, going on a six-match win streak and making it to the 2014 USTA/ITA Division I Women’s Ohio Valley Regional Championship final.
“They were absolutely huge at No. 1 doubles in both the SEC and NCAA tournaments. They won at No. 1 against Georgia in the SEC final and that proved to be a pivotal doubles point. They won again at No. 1 against UCLA, against a really good team. They deserve a lot of credit in terms of what we were able to achieve as a team. It was remarkable what they did. I think they learned a way to play that worked, but I think they need to learn “plan B” and “plan c”. Learn a little more ‘when this isn’t working, we need to do this’ and broaden their identity as a team. They have really great energy on the court together as a team and have both improved a lot as tennis players, but especially doubles players.”
Tournament Field
Women’s Singles Competitor List
Julia Elbaba, Virginia
Maegan Manasse, California
Stephanie Wagner, Miami (FL)
Sydney Campbell, Vanderbilt
Danielle Collins, Virginia
Hayley Carter, North Carolina
Giuliana Olmos, USC
Joana Eidukonyte, Clemson
Viktoriya Lushkova, Oklahoma State
Sinead Lohan, Miami (FL)
Astra Sharma, Vanderbilt
Klara Fabikova, California
Rachel Pierson, Texas A&M
Ronit Yurovsky, Michigan
Kiah Generette, Baylor
Luisa Stefani, Pepperdine
Women’s Doubles Competitor List
Maegan Manasse/Denise Starr, California
Sydney Campbell/Courtney Colton, Vanderbilt
Matea Cutura/Christina Maddox, Pepperdine
Mami Adachi/Aldila Sutjiadi, Kentucky
Hayley Carter/Whitney Kay, North Carolina
Giuliana Olmos/Gabby Smth, USC
Stephanie Wagner/Sinead Lohan, Miami (FL)
Rachel Pierson/Saska Gavrilovska, Texas A&M