Wagner Wins Fourth ACC Weekly Honor of 2016
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – For the eighth time in her illustrious career and fourth time this year, senior Stephanie Wagner of the University of Miami women’s tennis team has been named the ACC Player of the Week.
A Hurricane has now garnered the ACC weekly honor in six of the past seven weeks, with Wagner taking the honor four teams and sophomores Sinead Lohan and Wendy Zhang each winning once. The lone time during that stretch a Miami player did not earn the accolade was a week in which the Hurricanes did not compete.
“Wagner has been so focused lately,” Miami head coach Paige Yaroshuk-Tews said. “She’s enjoying herself so much out there and really wants to finish strong.”
The Amberg, Germany, native is the first person since 2012 to win at least four ACC Player of the Week honors in one season. Her three recognitions in 2013 were tied for the most in a year over the past three campaigns.
Wagner picked up a pair of top-50 singles victories last week to help lead seventh-ranked Miami (15-4, 10-2 ACC) to two conference road triumphs, stretching the team’s winning streak to 11 in a row.
In a 5-2 to win at then-No. 20 Wake Forest, Wagner won 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 against then-No. 44 Kimmy Guerin. Teaming with Zhang, she also earned a ranked doubles victory, topping then-No. 45 Guerin and Anna Ulyashchenko, 6-4.
A day later, Wagner beat then-No. 38 Martina Frantova of then-No. 37 NC State, 6-4, 6-7 (6-8), 1-0 (10-7). She also picked up a doubles win with Zhang, taking down Frantova and Tayla Stenta, 6-4.
Both singles victories for Wagner, who is ranked sixth nationally, came at the No. 1 position, as did both of her doubles wins.
Wagner, who is four wins shy of the program’s all-time singles victories record (133), is 17-3 in singles this spring, including 11-1 in the ACC, 13-2 at No. 1 and 14-3 against ranked players. In doubles, Wagner and Zhang, the eighth-ranked duo in the country, are a team-leading 15-6, with a 7-3 record in ACC action, a 13-5 ledger at No. 1 and a 10-5 mark against ranked pairs.
The Hurricanes will conclude regular season play this weekend at home in Coral Gables, Fla., at the Neil Schiff Tennis Center. Miami meets No. 32 Syracuse Friday at 11 a.m., and then takes on Louisville Sunday at noon on ESPN3 in Wagner and Clementina Riobueno’s senior day match.
To learn more about University of Miami women’s tennis, follow @CanesWTennis.
