No. 15 Vanderbilt Commodores (1-0)
vs.
MTSU Blue Raiders (0-0) & Memphis Tigers (0-0)
MTSU: Jan. 23, 2021 • Noon CT | Memphis: Jan. 24, 2021 • Noon CT
One on the Road, One at Home
- After kicking off the season last weekend, No. 15 Vanderbilt will play on the road at Middle Tennessee State on Saturday before starting a five-match homestand on Sunday against Memphis. Both matches are set to start at noon
- Due to COVID-19 protocols and social distancing guidelines, fans are not permitted to attend Sunday’s home match against Memphis.
- Fans can follow the match via live stream, live scoring or on Twitter by following @VandyWTennis.
ITA Rankings
- The Commodores open the 2021 campaign ranked No. 15 in the country. Three SEC teams start the year in the top 15 with Georgia at No. 8 and South Carolina at No. 14.
- In addition to the team ranking, fifth-year senior Christina Rosca opens the season ranked No. 20 in the national singles poll. The spot makes her the second-highest ranked player in the SEC with Georgia’s Katarina Jokic at No. 16.
Elite Ranks
- With a three-set victory on Jan. 17, Christina Rosca earned her 100th career singles victory against Western Kentucky.
Debriefing
- Vanderbilt returns experience while welcoming strong newcomers to the fold in what should setup a successful 2021 campaign.
- Led by fifth-year seniors Rosca and Emma Kurtz, the Dores also welcomed Holly Staff and Anessa Lee to the program ahead of the 2020 fall season. Across the three tournaments, Staff and Lee led Vanderbilt with five singles wins apiece.
- In the first dual match of the 2021 season, Staff played No. 2 singles and Lee played No. 3.
A New Captain
- Over summer, Aleke Tsoubanos took over as the program’s head coach after 13 seasons on staff as an assistant coach.
- With Tsoubanos taking over, Geoff Macdonald remains on staff as the program’s assistant coach.
- One of the most-respected college coaching duos in the country, Tsoubanos and Macdonald led the Commodores to the program’s first national championship in 2015. The pair has also ushered the Dores to 236 wins, 12 NCAA Tournament appearances and back-to-back SEC Tournament and regular-season titles in 2017-18.
- Tsoubanos’ first dual-match victory came Jan. 17 in a 7-0 sweep of Western Kentucky.
Looking Astern
- The Commodores defeated Western Kentucky in the season opener on Sunday, sweeping the Hilltoppers 7-0.
- Christina Rosca earned her 100th career singles victory in a three-set win at No. 4 singles.
- During the match, Vanderbilt won every doubles match 6-1 or 6-2 and while only dropping one set across singles play, each of its 12 set victories saw the Dores drop no more than three games.
A Look Back at 2020
- Last season, Vanderbilt went 7-3 across 10 matches with a 3-1 mark in conference play before the remainder of the year was canceled due to COVID-19. Two of those losses were by 4-3 scorelines against Arizona State and No. 36 LSU.
- Rosca won each of her last five matches of the season, finishing the spring campaign with an 8-2 record and a 6-1 mark at No. 1 singles.
- Marcella Cruz also had a strong debut season, going 5-1 on the year – all at No. 5 singles – before the shutdown.
On The Radar
- Continuing its five-match homestand next weekend, the Commodores will welcome the Miami Hurricanes to Currey Tennis Center on Saturday morning. First serve is set for 11 a.m.