Weekly Release #4
2/13/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Upcoming Schedule
Wednesday, Feb. 14 -- at Notre Dame (South Bend, Ind.), 4 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 17 -- at Tennessee (Knoxville, Tenn.), 11 a.m.
Friday, Feb. 23 -- vs. Northwestern (Varsity Tennis Center), 3 p.m.
Wolverines Close Out Four-Match Road Swing This Week
After a week off from competition, the No. 23-ranked University of Michigan women's tennis team (3-0, 0-0 Big Ten) heads back on the road to face No. 2-ranked Notre Dame this Wednesday (Feb. 14) at the Eck Tennis Pavilion in South Bend, Ind. The match is scheduled for a 4 p.m. start. The Wolverines will then close out their four-match road swing against Tennessee on Saturday (Feb. 17). That match is slated for an 11 a.m. start at the Goodfriend Tennis Center in Knoxville, Tenn.
Live Scoring of This Week's Matches
Live updates of Wednesday's match against Notre Dame can be found here.
Live updates of Saturday's match against Tennessee can be found here.
Scouting the Opponents
Notre Dame -- The No. 2-ranked Fighting Irish (6-1) started off the year with five straight victories before suffering a 4-2 defeat to Georgia Tech in the championship match of the USTA/ITA National Team Indoor Championship on Feb. 4. In their last outing on Feb. 9, the Irish posted a 4-3 win over Louisville to extend their home winning streak to 21 matches. Notre Dame has a pair of singles players in the national rankings, with freshman Colleen Rielley at No. 31 and senior Catrina Thompson at No. 41. Catrina teams with twin sister Christian for a No. 11 national doubles ranking, while junior Brook Buck and sophomor Kelcy Tefft are listed at No. 5. Freshman Cosmina Ciobanu holds a team-best 17-4 record in 2006-07, including a perfect 7-0 dual match mark. Junior Brook Buck and sophomore Kelcy Tefft hold the team's top doubles record at 14-3 (6-0 dual). The Irish return five starters from last year's team, which finished at 27-2 and reached the quarterfinals of the NCAA Championship. Head coach Jay Louderback is in his 17th season at UND and holds a career record of 315-149 at the school. Notre Dame leads the all-time series with Michigan by a 17-8 margin. The Irish won both meetings last season, earning a 6-1 win in Ann Arbor on Feb. 15, 2006 before posting a 4-0 triumph in the second round of the NCAA Championship in South Bend on May 13, 2006. Notre Dame on the Internet: www.und.com
Tennessee -- The No. 26-ranked Lady Volunteers (3-1) will be facing their third Big Ten Conference opponent of the year when they host Michigan, having already earned wins over Purdue (4-3) and Illinois (7-0). Senior Blakeley Griffifth is ranked No. 12 nationally in singles and holds a team-best overall record of 16-5 (3-1 dual match mark at No. 1). Griffifth and freshman Zsofia Zubor have the team's top overall doubles record at 13-4 (2-2 dual match mark at No. 2). The Lady Vols return four letterwinners from last year's team, which finished at 12-13 overall and reached the first round of the NCAA Championship. Co-head coaches Mike Patrick and Sonia Hahn-Patrick are in their 10th season together, holding a career record of 171-89 as a duo at Tennessee. The Lady Vols lead the all-time series with Michigan by an 8-2 margin, but the Wolverines came away with a 5-2 victory in the last meeting on Feb. 19, 2006 in Ann Arbor. Tennessee on the Internet: www.utladyvols.com
Michigan Posts Pair of Comeback Wins Over Pac-10 Teams
Michigan improved to 2-0 on the season after earning a 4-3 comeback victory over Oregon on Feb. 3 at the Student Tennis Center in Eugene, Ore. The Wolverines lost the doubles point but stayed focused, winning four of six in singles play to pull out the important non-conference road win.
U-M remained perfect in dual match play at 3-0 after earning a 6-1 victory over Washington on Feb. 4 at the Nordstrom Tennis Center in Seattle, Wash. The Wolverines surrendered a tightly contested doubles point but rebounded to win all six singles matches for their second comeback victory in as many days.
Comeback Kids
The Wolverines have come back to earn team victories after losing the doubles point in each of their three matches this season. Michigan has gone a combined 2-7 in doubles play but holds a remarkable 14-4 record in singles action.
Delicata Dominating Singles
Senior Kara Delicata (LaSalle, Ontario/Sandwich Secondary School) is off to a hot start in her final dual match season at Michigan. Delicata remains perfect at the No. 4 singles position (3-0) after defeating each of her three opponents in straight sets. In fact, Delicata has not given up more than three games in any of the six sets she's played this year. She is already just five wins away from matching her career-best total of eight dual match victories, set in both her freshman and sophomore seasons (2004-05). Delicata has won five straight matches dating back to the Michigan Invitational on Jan. 12-14.
Six and Counting ...
Sophomore Chisako Sugiyama (Parsippany, N.J./The Montclair Kimberley Academy) and freshman Tania Mahtani (Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif./Palos Verdes Peninsula HS) each carry a six-match winning streak into the contest against Notre Dame. Sugiyama, who holds a team-best 15-3 overall singles record, has won all three of her matches at No. 2. Mahtani has performed like a veteran in her first month of dual match competition, compiling a perfect record of 3-0 at the No. 5 spot. Mahtani, who has not surrendered a set in dual match play, is 12-6 overall in 2006-07.
Two Wolverines Nearing Milestones
Senior Elizabeth Exon (Irvine, Calf./Woodbridge HS) is two singles wins shy of 75 for her career at Michigan. Exon stands at 73-51 heading into Wednesday's match against Notre Dame. Graduate/senior Jenny Kuehn's (Leipzig, Germany/Sport Gymnasium Leipzig) 10-7 doubles record since her arrival in Ann Arbor puts her three victories away from 100 for her career (97-28). Kuehn posted a remarkable doubles record of 87-21 in her first three years of collegiate tennis at Tulane.
Exon and Shafner Elected Team Co-Captains for 2007
Head coach Amanda Augustus recently announced that senior Elizabeth Exon and junior Allie Shafner (Englewood, Colo./Cherry Creek HS) have been voted as co-captains by their teammates to lead the Wolverines in 2007. Both student-athletes are carrying the honor for the first time in their careers.
Michigan Team, Kuehn in ITA National Rankings
Despite its two wins over Oregon and Washington on Feb. 3-4, Michigan dropped one spot to No. 23 in the fourth edition of the Fila Collegiate Tennis Rankings, administered by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association on Tuesday (Feb. 13). The Wolverines, who ended last season with a final national ranking of No. 28, are the top Big Ten Conference team in the poll behind No. 6 Northwestern. Defending national champion Stanford occupies the No. 1 spot for the fifth time in six weeks. Michigan will be tested from start to finish this season as 11 of its 20 opponents were listed in the first national rankings.
Graduate senior Jenny Kuehn is the lone Wolverine in the national singles rankings (released Jan. 9) at No. 81.
Wolverine Trio Earn Fall Regional Rankings
Three Michigan student-athletes were awarded with regional rankings at the conclusion of the 2006 fall season. Sophomore Chisako Sugiyama is the top Wolverine in the Midwest Region singles rankings at No. 8 after going 9-3 during the fall and claiming the 32-player crown at the Wolverine Invitational on Sept. 29-Oct. 1, 2006. Sugiyama also reached the semifinals in the 64-player main draw at the Wilson/ITA Midwest Regional Championships on Oct. 19-24, 2006. Graduate senior Jenny Kuehn, who is listed at No. 16, competed in qualifying at the Riviera/ITA All-American Championships on Sept. 30-Oct. 8, 2006 and finished the fall at 4-4. Kuehn and senior Kara Delicata are the lone U-M doubles team in the regional rankings (No. 7) after participating in qualifying at the Riviera/ITA All-American Championships and recording a 2-2 mark during the fall.
The Wolverine Seniors
Michigan's true senior class of Kara Delicata and Elizabeth Exon will look to guide the Wolverines one step further in its final season at Michigan. Delicata, who was named to the All-Big Ten Conference team for the first time last season, is the most experienced doubles player for Michigan. She holds a career record of 75-47 overall and a 49-25 dual match mark at the top doubles position. Delicata is a two-time NCAA doubles qualifier (2004-05) and has consistently been ranked among the nation's top doubles players during her first three seasons at Michigan. Exon, a two-time All-Big Ten selection (2004, '06) and 2007 team co-captain, is the most accomplished singles player returning for the Wolverines as she holds a career record of 73-51 overall and 43-28 in dual match play. The 2004 ITA Midwest Rookie of the Year, Exon moved into a four-way tie for 10th place on Michigan's career singles wins chart (73) after defeating Washington's Victoria Brymer, 7-6(4), 4-1 ret., at No. 3 on Feb. 4.
Graduate senior Jenny Kuehn joined Michigan after playing her first three years of collegiate tennis at Tulane University. Kuehn, who holds remarkable career records of 85-32 in singles and 97-28 in doubles, was a 2003 NCAA All-American in doubles after claiming the doubles crown at the ITA National Indoor Championship in the fall of 2002. She was also named the Conference USA's Player of the Year twice (2003-04) and Freshman of the Year (2003) during her illustrious career at Tulane.
The Lone U-M Junior
Junior Allie Shafner, who is serving as a team captain for the first time in her career, enters her third dual match season on a high note after posting career-best numbers in singles (14) and doubles (21) wins as a sophomore in 2005-06. Shafner and Chisako Sugiyama proved to be one of the most reliable doubles teams for U-M last year as the pair finished the dual match season at 11-5 at Nos. 2 and 3 (7-3 in the Big Ten).
Sophomore Class Making an Impact
Michigan's sophomore class of Lindsey Howard (Richmond, Va./Mills E. Godwin HS) and Chisako Sugiyama has already accomplished great things on the court in a short time in Ann Arbor. Sugiyama led the team in both singles (27) and doubles (24) victories as a freshman with the 27 singles victories tying her for fourth place on U-M's all-time single-season wins list. She is already listed in first place on the Wolverines' career winning percentage list (minimum of 40 matches played) at .764 (42-13). Sugiyama is a two-time Wolverine Invitational singles champion; she advanced to the singles semifinal at the Wilson/ITA Midwest Regional Championships this past fall on Oct. 19-24.
Howard, who did not compete in the fall while recovering from right shoulder surgery, went 12-12 in singles and 18-12 in doubles during her freshman year in 2005-06. Howard and Nina Yaftali (2005-06) went an impressive 16-8 in dual match play at Nos. 2 and 3 doubles. Howard also went 8-5 at the No. 6 singles position, with her biggest victory coming against Nebraska (May 12, 2006) in the first round of the NCAA Championship to help Michigan clinch a 4-3 comeback triumph.
Welcome to Ann Arbor
Michigan welcomes freshmen Tanvi Dudhela (San Jose, Calif./Archbishop Mitty HS) and Tania Mahtani to the 2006-07 roster. Dudhela was ranked as high as No. 2 in the USTA Northern California section for Girls' 18's and was the West Catholic Athletic League and Central Coast Section CIF singles champion as a junior at Archbishop Mitty High School. Mahtani, who finished as the singles runner-up at this past fall's Wolverine Invitational on Sept. 29-Oct. 1, 2006, was ranked as high as No. 23 in the nation for Girls' 18's. Mahtani attended Palos Verdes Peninsula High School, the same high school that U-M head coach Amanda Augustus graduated from. Mahtani guided her team to the California Interscholastic Federation Division I championship as sophomore.
2006-07 Tournament Season Review
Michigan began the 2006 fall season on a bright note, as the Maize and Blue won 20 of 30 matches and placed two players in the championship final of the 32-player singles draw at the Wolverine Invitational on Sept. 29-Oct. 1, 2006. Sophomore Chisako Sugiyama claimed a singles title at the tournament for the second straight year, as she defeated freshman teammate Tania Mahtani by a score of 6-3, 6-1 in the championship match.
Sugiyama led the Wolverines once again at the Wilson/ITA Midwest Regional Championships on Oct. 19-24, 2006, as she won four straight matches en route to a semifinal finish in 64-player main singles draw and teamed with senior Jenny Kuehn to reach the semifinal round in the 64-team doubles competition.
Sugiyama's performance marked Michigan's best singles finish at the regional tournament since 1998, when Danielle Lund (1997-2000) reached the championship match. Sugiyama and Kuehn's finish marked Michigan's second appearance in the regional doubles semifinals in three years, with then sophomore Kara Delicata and Michelle DaCosta (2002-05) reaching the semifinals in 2004.
The Wolverines wrapped up the fall season at the Thunderbird Invitational on Nov. 3-5, 2006, led by freshman Tania Mahtani's quarterfinal berth in the 32-player main singles draw.
Michigan wrapped up the tournament portion of its 2006-07 schedule by hosting Denver, Duke and Louisiana State at the Michigan Invitational on Jan. 12-14. The Wolverines earned overall records of 13-8 in singles and 4-5 in doubles during the three-day event.
Sugiyama carried her spectacular play in the fall over to the new year as she was one of two Wolverines to go undefeated in three singles matches at the tournament. She was named the Michigan Invitational singles champion based on the event's point system. Also finishing the weekend with an unblemished singles record was Mahtani.
Kuehn and junior Allie Shafner both went undefeated in doubles play and paired together for a perfect 2-0 mark. The highlight in doubles saw the Wolverine tandem upset Duke's 29th-ranked tandem of Melissa Mang and Jessi Robinson by a score of 8-3.
The Leader of the Wolverines
Head coach Amanda Augustus is in her first season at the helm of the U-M women's tennis program. Augustus served as U-M's assistant coach last season under Bitsy Ritt, who retired from coaching after 22 seasons to take an associate athletic director role at U-M.
A former collegiate standout at the University of California from 1996-99, Augustus was a two-time NCAA doubles champion (1998-99) and earned All-America honors in each of her four seasons. During her junior campaign, Augustus advanced to the quarterfinal round at the NCAA Singles Championship. She was named to the All-Pac-10 Conference team all four years and achieved career-high national rankings of No. 1 in doubles and No. 4 in singles by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association. Augustus served as a team captain for three seasons, leading Cal to NCAA Championship appearances each year. As a senior, Augustus guided the Bears to the NCAA semifinals and a program-best No. 4 final ITA ranking.
Augustus captured 20 professional titles during her stint on the WTA circuit and achieved career-best world rankings of No. 82 in doubles and No. 304 in singles. She competed in the main draw at all four Grand Slam events, most recently the 2004 Wimbledon Championships. She reached the second round in both the French Open and U.S. Open, and was a semifinalist at the Bank of West Classic.
Ashley Joins Coaching Staff in 2006-07
Teryn Ashley is in her first season as an assistant coach with the Michigan women's tennis program. Ashley arrives at U-M after a successful professional playing career on the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Tour.
Ashley was a three-time NCAA All-American and four-time All-Pac-10 Conference selection during her career at Stanford University (1997-2000). A member of the Cardinal's 1997 and 1999 NCAA championship teams, Ashley served as a team captain during her junior and senior seasons. She was ranked as high as No. 4 in singles and No. 1 in doubles during her career and is listed in a tie for 10th place on the school's all-time dual match singles wins list (84-17). Ashley earned the Pac-10's indoor singles championship in 1999 and indoor doubles crown in 2000.
Following her illustrious collegiate career, Ashley enjoyed a five-year stint on the WTA Tour from 2001-06. Ashley captured the doubles title at the 2003 ASB Bank Championships in addition to four singles titles and 13 doubles crowns on the International Tennis Federation (ITF) circuit. She holds career records of 118-103 in singles and 145-68 in doubles as a professional, and has achieved career-high world rankings of No. 95 in singles (7/5/04) and No. 59 in doubles (10/27/03). Ashley competed in the main draw at all four Grand Slam events during her career, reaching the second round in singles at the 2004 Wimbledon Championships.
Michigan Inks Four Standout Recruits for 2007-08
The Michigan women's tennis program announced the Dec. 4, 2006 signing of Denise Muresan (Lincolnshire, Ill./Adlai E. Stevenson HS), Rika Tatsuno (Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif./Palos Verdes Peninsula HS), Whitney Taney (Edina, Minn./Edina HS) and Kari Wig (Cochrane, Alberta/Cochrane HS) to National Letters of Intent to attend U-M and play for the Wolverines in the 2007-08 season. The four signings make up Amanda Augustus' first recruiting class as head coach at Michigan. NLI Release
2005-06 Season Review
The Wolverines finished the 2006 dual match season with a 17-8 overall record and a third-place finish in the Big Ten Conference at 8-2. The 17-win season tied for the most victories since the 1997 campaign, while U-M's record of 8-2 in league play was its best since the Wolverines claimed their first and only conference crown with an undefeated mark of 10-0 in 1997.
The Maize and Blue closed the regular season by winning five straight matches, and then posted victories over Wisconsin (4-1) and Iowa (4-3) en route to its second consecutive trip to the Big Ten Championship final. Despite a 4-2 loss to Northwestern in the title match, the Wolverines were still awarded with their fifth straight bid to the NCAA Championship.
After a thrilling 4-3 comeback triumph over Nebraska in the first round, Michigan's season came to an end with a 4-0 defeat to No. 2-ranked and host Notre Dame. It marked the final career match for 22-year head coach Bitsy Ritt.
U-M ended the year ranked No. 28 nationally and No. 3 regionally. Kara Delicata and Debra Streifler (2003-06) finished the year ranked No. 25 in the national doubles poll after going 15-4 overall and a perfect 10-0 in the Big Ten at the No. 1 position. Delicata and Elizabeth Exon were named to the All-Big Ten team at the conclusion of the season.
Four Wolverines were named to the Academic All-Big Ten team in 2005-06, while Streifler and Lindsey Howard were named ITA Scholar-Athletes for the first time in their careers. Streifler also garnered the ITA's Cissie Leary Sportsmanship Award for the Midwest Region.
On the Horizon ...
The Wolverines return to the Varsity Tennis Center on Friday (Feb. 23) to host Northwestern at 3 p.m.
Contact: Marc Ressler (734) 763-4423
