Five Canes in ITA Fall Rankings, Wagner No. 6
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The ITA announced its 2015 preseason rankings Tuesday afternoon and the University of Miami is one of just five women’s teams in the nation with five ranked singles players.
Senior Stephanie Wagner is atop the group of Hurricanes and ranked sixth in the country, while sophomore Sinead Lohan comes in at No. 13 nationally.
“I am happy with our players’ starting points, but we need to stay focused on the ending point,” Miami head coach Paige Yaroshuk-Tews said. “We have gotten off to an explosive start in practice—one of the strongest I’ve seen in many years—so the future is bright.”
In addition to Wagner and Lohan, senior Clementina Riobueno checks in at No. 63 on the ITA’s list, followed by sophomore Wendy Zhang at No. 73 and sophomore Yolimar Ogando, who is tied for No. 94.
A native of Amberg, Germany, Wagner ranked second nationally among ACC players, seniors, and international players. She was named an ITA All-American and First Team All-ACC, as well as the ITA National Player to Watch. Wagner advanced to the semifinals of the 2015 NCAA Singles Championship and finished the year ranked ninth.
Lohan is coming off a season in which she earned ACC Freshman of the Year honors and was both an ITA All-American and a Second Team All-ACC selection. The Waterford, Ireland native finished 2015 as the third-highest ranked freshman in the nation and is now the third-ranked sophomore. She reached the NCAA Singles Championship quarterfinals last year and ended the season ranked No. 20.
“Having Wagner begin the season at six and Lohan at 13 is exciting,” Yaroshuk-Tews said. “These two are looking to dominate this year. What is most interesting is that they have so much more in their tanks. We need to get there and keep having fun while doing it.”
Riobueno was nationally ranked the entire 2015 campaign and peaked at No. 61 in the country. She was named the ACC Player of the Week March 3, 2015. Zhang was also ranked all of last season and rose as high as No. 58. She earned All-ACC Academic Team honors as a freshman. For Ogando, this is her debut in the ITA rankings. She recorded a straight set victory over NCAA Team Championship MVP Astra Sharma of Vanderbilt in her first season as a Hurricane.
Along with the quintet of Hurricanes in the singles rankings, Riobueno and Zhang check in at No. 50 on the doubles list. Although they have yet to play together, both were ranked with other partners at least five separate weeks during the 2015 season, with Riobueno featured from wire to wire.
Additionally, the Riviera/ITA Women’s All-American Championships selections were released Friday by the ITA. Lohan and Wagner are in the singles main draw, while Riobueno is in the qualifying draw and Zhang is an alternate. Riobueno and Zhang are also alternates for the qualifying doubles field.
The Hurricanes are set to begin the fall season this weekend, as the team hosts the Miami Fall Invite from Friday through Sunday. Lohan and Wagner will be playing in the Oracle/ITA Masters in Malibu, Calif. the same three days.
To learn more about the University of Miami women’s tennis team, follow @HurricaneTennis.
