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Taka Bertrand Named SEC Freshman of the Year 4/28/2005 Vanderbilt freshman Taka Bertrand earned SEC Freshman of the Year honors as voted on by the league’s head coaches Wednesday. “What an incredible honor for this most deserving young woman,” said Vanderbilt Head Coach Geoff Macdonald. “We played the toughest schedule in the country and she distinguished herself in both singles and doubles playing like a veteran.” Bertrand currently owns a 2005 record of 18-6, 8-3 SEC while playing mostly at the No. 3 position. The VU rookie has toppled every ranked opponent she has faced thus far this spring, including tremendous wins over both No. 12 Zerene Reyes of Florida and No. 50 Sarah Foster of Kentucky. The Great Falls, Va. product clinched perhaps the biggest win of the year for the Dores in Lexington against No. 2 Kentucky on April 16. Down 4-5 in the decisive third frame, Bertrand held serve to square the match and then broke her opponent to take a 6-5 advantage. The VU freshman then served out the match to earn the clinching Commodore victory. Bertrand currently owns a No. 73 ranking according to the ITA. On the doubles side, Bertrand teams up with Vanderbilt sophomore Amanda Fish to form the No. 43 ranked team in the nation. The duo has earned an overall record of 19-6, including an impressive 8-2 run through the SEC at the No. 2 doubles slot. For their efforts in doubles, Bertrand and Fish were named Second Team All-SEC. Bertrand’s Freshman of the Year nod comes on the heels of her Second Team All-SEC selection for singles play last week. |
