Cohen Finishes No. 1 in Final Fila/ITA Collegiate Tennis Rankings
June 1, 2007
Coral Gables, Fla. – University of Miami women’s tennis All-American Audra Cohen was ranked No. 1 in singles in the final Fila Collegiate Tennis Rankings administered by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA), it was announced Friday. In addition, senior Audrey Banada and Freshman Laura Vallverdu were ranked in singles, while the doubles rankings saw three Miami duos on the list.
In singles, Banada was ranked No. 42, while Vallverdu finished in the top-20 at No. 19. The rankings are administered by a computer formula that calculates the entire season’s results.
Cohen, who announced that she will further her career in professional tennis, was crowned the 2007 NCAA Women’s Singles Champion, bringing home the first national title in Miami women’s tennis history. The Plantation, Fla. native wrapped-up her career with the Hurricanes with a 76-4 career singles record, and a 65-11 overall mark in career doubles.
After finishing just two-wins shy of becoming the all-time leader to hold the best record in a single season, Cohen landed second all-time with a 42-2 overall record in singles, with 27 of those victories over nationally-ranked opponents, and a 25-1 mark in dual-match play. Cohen posted a 28-match win-streak just prior to falling in her only loss of the dual season.
During the fall, Cohen became the second National Indoor Champion at Miami in the last three seasons, joining former Miami tennis star, Megan Bradley.
After capturing 11 consecutive wins in ACC matches that earned her All-ACC honors, Cohen garnered the 2007 ACC Women’s Tennis Player of the Year award, marking her second consecutive honor.
Banada was ranked No. 42 after closing out her career at Miami with an overall singles record of 32-11 for the season, 21-6 in dual action, while finishing with 10 wins at the Nos. 2 and 3 spots respectively. This season marked a special one for Banada, as she earned the top-spot as the all-time leader in singles at Miami, and finished with a career record of 110-25, surpassing former All-American Ronni Reis, who tallied 103 wins from 1985-1988.
In doubles, Banada finished with a 38-12 overall record on the season, and wrapped-up her career with an overall 122-32 record, as she sits as Miami’s all-time leader in doubles, surpassing former Hurricane Melissa Applebaum’s 107-34 record.Banada as the second player in Miami women’s tennis history to uphold the position as the all-time career records leader in both singles and doubles simultaneously. Former Miami star Lise Gregory also led in singles and doubles at the same time in 1987.
The North Miami Beach, Fla. native was named to the All-ACC team for the third time in her career, and was ranked as high as No. 26, marking a personal-high in the ITA rankings.
Vallverdu wrapped-up her first collegiate season ranked 19th after finishing with a 32-4 singles record. After sitting out for eight consecutive singles matches due to an injury between Feb. 3 and March 23, Vallverdu made her way back into the line-up, seeing very few playing time at the Nos. 5 and 3 positions, until she found her grove to claim her original No. 2 spot in singles, where she finished with a 10-1 record.
The Valencia, Venezuela native was impressive throughout the 2006-07 season. During the fall, Vallverdu defeated three nationally ranked opponents including ACC foe Amanda McDowell of Georgia Tech in the final, en route to claiming her first title at the Fall Desert Collegiate Classic in Palm Springs, Ca. Vallverdu also posted an 18-match win streak (Nov. 3-April 20), along with 10 back-to-back singles victories in the dual season, until she fell to Lauren Macfarlane of Florida State at the ACC Championships.
Throughout the spring, Vallverdu did not land below the top-25 mark in the ITA rankings. The rookie was ranked No. 6 in the nation entering the spring season that marked her as the highest ranked freshman in the country of 2007.
Cohen and Vallverdu finished the season ranked No. 16 in the nation after posting a 21-4 doubles mark, primarily played at the No. 1 position. Cohen also finished No. 33 in doubles action with junior Caren Seenauth. Together, the doubles duo finished with a 13-1 overall record at the No. 2 spot. Banada and junior Romy Farah finished the season as the 25th-ranked doubles team, after posting a 31-10 overall mark on the season.
Last week, Miami was ranked ninth in the final team rankings of the ITA, after finishing the season 22-7. The Hurricanes made their 22nd appearance in the NCAA Team Tournament this year, where they advanced all the way to the quarterfinal round, but fell to top-seed Stanford, 4-1. Before that in the Sweet 16, the Hurricanes pulled-off an impressive rally to upset then-eighth-ranked Southern California, 4-3. The Hurricanes are now 27-22 all-time in the NCAA Tournament.
