Orangewomen Battle BIG EAST Field at Conference Championship
4/19/2001 10:31:00 AM | Tennis
SU notched four wins against conference teams this season, including victories against West Virginia, Georgetown, Rutgers and Seton Hall. The Orangewomen are led by senior Michelle Neveklovska (West Vancouver, British Columbia) with 39 wins. Sophomore Masha Kabanova (Moscow, Russia) posted her 38th win and leads the team with 19 singles wins. Sophomore Shervin Saedinia (Woodland Hills, CA) had her 36th win at Brown. With her three-set win at Brown, Saedinia notched her fourth straight singles win. Saedinia is 17-11 in singles action this spring and has collected 38 wins this year.Senior Zuzanna Borucka (Gdansk, Poland) also has 36 wins, while freshman Zani Suttle (Roswell, GA) recorded 31 wins this year. Junior Katie Thompson (Wesley Chapel, FL) posted her 30th win of the 2001 season last weekend. Thompson posted a three-set win at No. 5 singles to break through the barrier.
The tournament's format changed this season. Previously, all 12 teams attended the tournament and competed in a double-elimination competition. This year's version of the tournament will be contested by the conference's top six teams, as determined by a seeding committee. The criteria the committee utilized included: ITA team ranking, head-to-head records with BIG EAST opponents, record against non-conference opponents. This year's field of six teams is hosted by defending conference champs Miami. Notre Dame is the top seed, followed by the Hurricanes. Boston College, Virginia Tech, SU and West Virginia round out the field.
Virginia Tech is 10-11 this season. The Hokies were ranked by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association earlier in the season, peaking at No. 53, before dropping out of the poll in late March. The squad is led by Kristin Lanio's 21-8 record. The versatile Lanio could play either No. 5 or 6 singles, recording identical 7-2 records at both spots. Kristen Sutbbs will compete at No. 1 singles, posting a 12-11 overall singles mark and an 11-10 mark at the top singles spot. Antonella Pozzi is the No. 2 singles player. Pozzi is 8-9 at the second slot and has a 14-12 singles mark this spring. Ines Khelifi has a 17-14 singles record, including an 8-5 record at No. 3. Michelle Martaus is the team's most successful player at No. 4 singles, posting a 4-7 record at that level and a 4-20 overall singles mark. Pozzi and Stubbs are the Hokies No. 1 doubles team with a 13-8 doubles record, including eight wins at the top doubles slot.
The BIG EAST Tennis Championship
April 20-22, 2001 * Neil Schiff Tennis Complex * Coral Gables, FL
FRIDAY, APRIL 20
9 a.m. -- No. 4 Virginia Tech vs. NO. 5 SYRACUSE
Noon -- No. 3 Boston College vs. No. 6 West Virginia
SATURDAY, APRIL 21
9 a.m. -- No. 1 Notre Dame vs. Winner of Virginia Tech/ Syracuse
Noon -- No. 2 Miami vs. Winner of Boston College/West Virginia
3 p.m. -- Fifth-Place Match: Loser of Virginia Tech/
Syracuse vs. Loser of Boston College/West Virginia
SUNDAY, APRIL 22
Noon -- Third-Place Match: Loser of Saturday's 9 a.m. match vs. Loser of Saturday's Noon match
Noon -- CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
