Miami Set for NCAA Women's Tennis Championships in Texas
May 14, 2009
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College Station, Texas – The sixth-ranked and No. 6 seeded Miami Hurricanes take on No. 11 UCLA on Friday, May 15 in the Round of 16 at the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center at 10 a.m. EST as part of this year’s NCAA Women’s Tennis Championships in College Station, Texas.
The Hurricanes (25-4) are making their fifth appearance in the Round of 16 in the span of the past six seasons–all under the direction of head coach Paige Yaroshuk-Tews.
Miami comes into College Station having won 14 of its last 15 contests, including back-to-back 4-0 sweeps of Army and No. 29 FIU in the NCAA Coral Gables Regional to open this year’s field of 64 tournament last weekend at the Neil Schiff Tennis Center.
Yaroshuk-Tews will be leading the `Canes into a series with her alma mater [UCLA] where the Bruins hold a commanding 7-3 advantage overall, including an 0-2 series in NCAA Tournament matches. The last time these two teams hooked up in an NCAA Tournament was the quarterfinal round of the 2004 Tournament which saw the Bruins narrowly edge the `Canes, 4-3.
However, in the last matchup overall, Miami downed the Bruins, 4-3, in the 2005 ITA National Indoor Team Championships in Madison, Wis., pulling Yaroshuk-Tews’ record to 1-2 lifetime against UCLA.
UM has several players playing well as of late, including junior three-time All-ACC member Laura Vallverdu. Vallverdu is now seventh all-time in school history for career singles wins with 89–sitting just two behind Mari Toro (2000-04).
Also, sophomore All-ACC member Bianca Eichkorn Bianca Eichkorn not only has team-leading 37 singles victories on the year, but she is also tied for third place all-time at UM for wins in a single season. She joins her name with current volunteer assistant coach Megan Bradley who picked up 37 wins during her junior season (2003-04).
For more information on the NCAA Women’s Tennis Championships, please log on to the official NCAA Championships site for this year’s event: http://www.aggieathletics.com/ncaa2009/tennis/. Once there, you will find up-to-date news, live scoring, results and standings related to this year’s event.
About the UCLA Bruins…
UCLA, last year’s NCAA Champions, earned a trip to this year’s Round of 16 courtesy wins over Boston University (W, 4-0) and Arizona State (W, 4-3) in the Los Angeles Regional. The Bruins come into this year’s Sweet 16 with a record of 19-6, and are ranked No. 11 in the latest Campbell’s/ITA poll.
The Bruins are led by Yasmin Schnack (No. 15) at the top singles spot, holding a record of 26-9 on the campaign, but losing her only decision of the Los Angeles Regional against ASU’s Kelcy McKenna. Behind Schnack is Carling Seguso at the No. 6 position toting a record of 26-11 into the Round of 16. But it may well be the Bruins’ freshman sensation Nina Pantic at the No. 4 spot that has given them a boost–including a match-winner against the Sun Devils, with a record of 20-11 on the year, becoming the fourth Bruins player to eclipse the 20-win plateau on the campaign.
Familiar Foes Stand in the Path to Final Four…
If the Hurricanes are to advance to the Final Four for the third time in school history, then they will have to face three very familiar foes along the way. Not only do the `Canes have a Round of 16 matchup with UCLA, but then would await Arkansas and ACC foe Duke in the Quarterfinals. Miami has yet to face UCLA this season, but holds a 2-1 mark against Duke and Arkansas, respectively, on the season. The only loss in that stretch came in the ACC title match to Duke, a 4-3 setback for the Hurricanes.
Series with UCLA Favors West Coast…
The Hurricanes of Miami are just 3-7 lifetime against the west coast UCLA Bruins. UM head coach Paige Yaroshuk-Tews is 1-2 all-time against her alma mater, with the last match being a 5-3 victory over UCLA in the 2005 ITA National Team Indoor Championships in Madison, Wis. The last time these two hooked up in the NCAA Tournament was in 2004, with the Bruins taking a 4-3 win in the Quarterfinals in Athens, Ga.
Miami Feels `Sweet’ 16 Once Again…
For the fifth time in six seasons, the Hurricanes are making an appearance in the Round of 16 of the NCAA Women’s Tennis Championships. This is also the eighth time all-time for UM in the Round of 16. Miami is 5-2 all-time in the “Sweet 16” with a 4-1 loss last year to Baylor in Tulsa, Okla.
Miami Connection with the Bruins…
There is a very good connection between the two programs meeting up in the Round of 16 between Miami and UCLA. UM head coach Paige Yaroshuk-Tews was a stellar student-athlete at UCLA before graduating in 1996. Miami volunteer assistant coach Megan Bradley was a National Freshman of the Year and ITA All-American with the Bruins in 2002, but elected to play the final three years of her college tennis at the University of Miami–earning her degree in 2005.
Did You Know?…
Miami is making its 24th all-time appearance in the NCAA Tournament this season? The Hurricanes tote a record of 31-23 into the NCAA Round of 16 in College Station, Texas, including runner-up appearances in 1985 and 2006. Miami has been in the tournament the following years: 1982, `83, `84, `85, `86, `87, `88, `89, `91, `92, `96, `97, `98, `99, 2000, `01, `02, `03, `04, `05, `06, `07, `08 and, ultimately, 2009.
UM Versus Top 30 Opponents…
Miami enters the NCAA Tournament [Round of 16] boasting a 12-4 record against teams ranked in the Top 30 of this year’s Campbell’s/ITA poll. The Hurricanes have also claimed three wins over teams ranked in the Top 5 nationally at the time they met. UM has laid claim to wins over teams ranked in the Top 10 every year since 2003, including an upset of top-ranked Florida in 2004 as part of the NCAA Tournament [Gainesville Regional].
