Teams: Women's Tennis: Press Releases

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

WOMEN'S TENNIS TO MAKE EIGHTH STRAIGHT NCAA TOURNAMENT APPEARANCE

MEDFORD -- The Tufts University women's tennis team kept its roll of NCAA Tournament appearances running when it was announced Monday night that Coach Kate Bayard's Jumbos have earned one of nine Pool C berths (at-large) into the 2008 NCAA Tournament field. The Jumbos, who earned the program's eighth straight berth, will begin play this Friday (May 2) against Roger Williams University in a regional hosted by Williams College.

Sophomore Meghan McCooey leads the NCAA Tournament-bound Jumbos with 18 singles wins

Williams, who lost to Amherst for the NESCAC championship, is the top seed and host of the regional. Wellesley College, who will take on the Tufts-Roger Williams winner, also received a first-round bye. New Paltz and St. Lawrence will battle on Friday for the right to take on Williams in the second round on Saturday. The regional championship is set for Sunday. The regional champion advances to the national quarter-finals hosted this year by Gustavus Adolphus College in Saint Peter, Minnesota.

Tufts hosted the regional last season and advanced to the final before losing to Williams, 5-0. The Jumbos defeated Wellesley, 5-3, in the second round. This year's team is back in the NCAA's with a nice blend of talent. Veterans Andrea Cenko (St. Louis, MO), Mari Homma (Eastchester, NY), Meghan McCooey (Cumberland, RI) and Erica Miller (Boca Raton, FL) played for Tufts in the tournament last season. Cenko and Homma also played in the 2006 tournament. That core was joined this season by newcomer Julia Browne (Old Brookville, CT), a top-of-the-order singles player for the Jumbos in her first year. First-year Edwina Stewart (London, England) has been a key contributor in the spring, as has sophomore Laura Hoguet (Cincinnati, OH)

The Jumbos have an even 7-7 mark since making their first-ever NCAA appearance in 2001. Last season was the first time the team won two matches in NCAA play. Tufts comes into this year's tournament after an 11-6 record for the 2007-08 season. They advanced to the semi-finals of the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) championships this past weekend at Middlebury College, losing to Amherst 6-3. The Jumbos were ranked 13th nationally and fifth regionally in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) polls released on April 15.

McCooey (18-7 record), Browne (14-6) and Miller (13-7) have been very good for Tufts at the top of the order. They have a combined record of 45-20 for the season, led by McCooey's 18 wins in #1 and #2 matches. She advanced to the #2 singles final at the New England Championships last fall. Browne is rated #8 and McCooey #12 in the most recent ITA singles rankings. Cenko (11-6) and Homma (10-8) are experienced players lower in the order, while Stewart (6-4) or Hoguet (3-6) will get the start at #6 singles.

McCooey, who helped Tufts win the #2 doubles championship at New England's in the fall, joined Miller this spring to form a very successful union that has produced an 11-3 record. Homma and Cenko are the top pair and they are ranked 18th on the ITA's doubles list, one spot ahead of McCooey and Miller. Browne and Stewart are undefeated (8-0) in #3 doubles since they came together as a pair during the spring.

Roger Williams is the champion of The Commonwealth Coast Conference and enters the tournament with a 15-1 record. They are not ranked among the Northeast's top 25 teams on the ITA poll.

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