May 12, 2016
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The sixth-ranked defending national champion Vanderbilt women’s tennis team looks to begin the 2016 Division I NCAA Tournament at home this weekend, May 13-14.
NCAA matches are all single elimination with 64 teams showcased in the first round (Friday) of play. Each team is gradually knocked off throughout the weekend, with the remaining 16 squads making it to the NCAA tournament site in Tulsa, Okla.
The Commodores are the sixth-overall seed in this season’s draw and host the regional’s second-seeded Clemson Tigers, third-seeded Rice Owls and fourth-seeded Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Cougars. VU takes on SIUE at 4:00 pm CT, following the graduation of seniors Frances Altick, Courtney Colton, Maggie Leavell and Ellie Yates.
“We’ve got a good strong regional this year,” said head coach Geoff Macdonald. “SIUE, we don’t know as well, but they’re really solid team and Nick Mueller is a really good coach. Rice has moved up to become year in year out one of the most solid programs in the country; Elizabeth Schmidt does a great job. And Clemson, we all know, is one of the most consistently high achieving teams.”
After navigating their way through one of the toughest schedules in the country, the `Dores own a 13-3-1 season slate against their fellow NCAA championship opponents and a 19-5 overall record.
“I think you build all year for the NCAA tournament. There’s a feeling of excitement and anticipation…. The time is here! It’s a long year and we build towards this.”
While the Commodores have tried to keep the thoughts of last season’s success at bay throughout the regular season, Macdonald believes last year’s national championship is in the 2016 squad’s favor, after all the Commodores are one of nine teams to ever win the illustrious title.
“We’ve played a lot of big matches and the experiences from last year has taught us a lot about how to manage this tournament. I’m proud of this group, and I’m glad to finally be back and playing in a matches.”
For the third year in a row, Vandy has been hot at home and heads into this weekend’s regional action with a 32-0 home winning streak, coming out on top of two 4-3 battles this season.
Vanderbilt brings three All-Americans to the court, with Frances Altick most recently earning the honor after receiving a top-16 seed for the NCAA’s Singles Tournament. Joining Altick in NCAA action will be 2015 automatic singles All-American Sydney Campbell and doubles All-American, Astra Sharma.
The trio also represents VU in the latest Oracle/ITA rankings; Altick (No. 14), Campbell (No. 13) and Sharma (No. 32). In doubles, Colton and Campbell earned a spot in the NCAA Doubles tournament, and are the 14th-ranked tandem in the nation.
The two winners of Friday’s matches will collide in the second round of play, which will take place at 1:00 pm CT on May 14th.
The rest of the Commodores’ pod is comprised of the 11th-seeded Auburn Tigers, Alcorn State, Arizona State and NC State. The top team from each of the 16 sites advances to the NCAA Team Championships in Tulsa, Okla. May 19-24.
