@HurricaneTennis Ranked No. 12 by ITA
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The first ITA Division I National Women’s Tennis rankings of 2015 were released Tuesday and the University of Miami begins this year right where it finished the last one.
After a ninth straight Sweet 16 appearance, the Hurricanes ended their 2013-2014 season with a No. 12 ranking and they open this season at No. 12 as well.
“Team-wise it’s a decent starting point for us,” Miami head coach Paige Yaroshuk-Tews said. “We’ve never been a staff that focuses too much on numbers until tournament time.”
Miami is one of seven ACC schools ranked in the top 25, tied with the SEC for the most of any conference. Five ACC schools are among the top 13 on the list.
In addition to the team’s high ranking, five Hurricanes are ranked in both singles and doubles, while a sixth is feature on the doubles list.
“Really happy with [the players’] individual rankings, both singles and doubles,” Yaroshuk-Tews said. “We will have some real options to work with early in the season.”
Junior Stephanie Wagner is Miami’s top ranked singles player, checking in at seventh in the nation. Sinead Lohan is No. 39 and fellow freshman Wendy Zhang comes in at No. 58. Junior Clementina Riobueno is ranked No. 88 and senior Lina Lileikite is tied for No. 94.
In the Southeast Region, Wagner is ranked second, Lohan seventh, Zhang No. 12, Riobueno No. 17 and Lilekite No. 19.
On the ITA’s national doubles list, senior Lina Lilekite and junior Stephanie Wagner are ranked eighth. At No. 15 are senior Monique Albuquerque and junior Clementina Riobueno. Freshmen pair Wendy Zhang and Sinead Lohan holds the No. 37 spot on the list.
In the Southeast Region, Lilekite/Wagner are ranked second, Albuquerque/Riobueno third and Zhang/Lohan seventh.
The Hurricanes begin their spring season Friday, Jan. 16 at home with the Miami Spring Invite. Texas, Utah and Vanderbilt will be the other teams in the three-day invitational.
“I’m just ready to start this season and see how well our team responds,” Yaroshuk-Tews said. “I think these kids are ready to play.”
For more information on University of Miami women’s tennis, follow @HurricaneTennis.
