Women's Tennis Travels To NCAA Tournament
May 8, 2003 | Women's Tennis
May 8, 2003
NEW ORLEANS, La. - -
Tulane Women's Tennis NCAA Notes
The Tulane women's tennis team makes its third NCAA Tournament appearance in school history, as the Green Wave take on Texas in Gainesville, Fla., on Friday. The match is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m.
Tulane enters Friday's match with a 19-4 overall record and is currently ranked 29th in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association poll. Texas, 11-14 overall, is listed 33rd by the ITA. In addition to the team appearance, Tulane freshmen Jenny Kuhn and Julie Smekodub have each earned a spot in the 64-person singles draw and will also compete together in the 32-team doubles draw. The singles portion of the NCAA Tournament begin May 19, with the opening round of doubles following on May 20.
Friday's match will mark Tulane's first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2001, when the Green Wave reached the second round after an upset win over then-No. 19 Texas A&M. The Green Wave's only other NCAA berth came in 1999. Tulane earned an automatic bid into this season's NCAA Championships after claiming the Conference USA Tournament crown on April 15.
Tulane currently features three players ranked in singles by the ITA, led by Julie Smekodub, who is listed 33rd. Conference USA Player and Freshman of the Year Jenny Kuhn is ranked 61st, while Erika Valdes is ranked 109th. All three players are freshmen, making Tulane the only school in the nation to have as many as three newcomers ranked by the ITA. In addition, Kuhn and Smekodub team to form the ITA's 10th-ranked doubles tandem.
All three freshmen were recently named first-team All-Conference USA, with Ana Saaibi earning second-team All-Conference USA honors. Maria Ivanov was named third-team All-Conference USA, giving Tulane five selections among the 18 all-conference players. Tulane head coach David Schumacher was also named as the Conference USA Coach of the Year.
Texas boasts one player and a doubles team ranked by the ITA. Freshmen Kendra Strohm is ranked 66th in singles play, while also teaming with Ziva Grasic to form the nation's 22nd-ranked doubles team.
"We are excited to make another appearance in the NCAA Tournament," Tulane head coach David Schumacher said. "Hopefully we can make this a regular occurance. We know we've got a tough match ahead of us on Friday, but we are looking forward to it."
